Seventeen people, including three children, are missing after a boat they were using capsized in a river on Wednesday in central Malawi.
Police said the group of 22 people was crossing the Rusa River while heading to a funeral ceremony in Mchinji district.
Five people managed to swim ashore.
A local police commander, John Nkhoma, told Zodiak Online news website that the boat was small for that number of passengers.
More rescuers are on Thursday expected to start a search mission for the missing people.
Meanwhile, authorities in the district are advising community members to avoid sailing in flooded rivers.
Malawi is recovering from a devastating tropical storm last month that killed 511 people and left 533 others missing.
