Police on Monday said that 17 people are feared dead after heavy winds overturned a boat carrying local football players and their fans on a lake in Uganda, police said on Monday.

”Two bodies have been recovered, while no fewer than 15 passengers were still missing since the boat capsized on Lake Albert in north-western Uganda on Sunday,’’ police spokesman Julius Hakiza told dpa.

According to Hakiza, 32 people, who were all returning from a football match, had been rescued by Sunday.

”We suspect the boat was overloaded and it was also overpowered by strong winds,” Hakiza said.

Boat accidents are common on the East African nation’s numerous lakes, where simple wooden boats are used as a means of public transport and often travel overloaded, in spite of bad weather conditions. (dpa/NAN)