A boat carrying 40 people vanished earlier this week en route from Tanzania's eastern coastal town of Tanga to the Indian Ocean island of Pemba.
The MV Shukurureportedly left Tanga on Tuesday for a three-to-five-hour journey to Pemba, part of Tanzanian territory, but it had not reached its destination by this morning, Pemba North Regional Police Commander Ali Mbilikila said.
"We have unconfirmed reports that there were more than 40 people aboard, but it has disappeared," he said, adding: "We do not have any boats to launch a search in the sea for rescue purposes".
Police sources in Tanga said no bodies had been discovered. Winds could have blown the vessel toward Kenya, some 100 kilometres to the north of Tanga, or even out to the Comoros islands, 800 kilometres to the south, they added.
Relatives of passengers on the boat have been waiting since Wednesday at the Pemba port for any sign of the vessel.
AFP