Asked to give an estimate of the number of people who cross over each day, Col. Jean-Aive Allakoua, special port commissioner for Brazzaville, said that was difficult to do since everything depended on how many barges and canoes were operating. There are DRC Congolese who live abroad and want to go back there, Westerners who want to evacuate their families. All together, that's a large number and there were around 400 to 500 people crossing per day before traffic was stopped. Those who managed to make it out had similar stories to tell. Heavy weapons are booming a few kilometres from Kinshasa.
People are really uncertain about tomorrow.
The capital has no water or electricity. Food prices have gone up. But the conflict has become a regional affair. That action has led to a rift in SADC, mainly between Zimbabwe, which chose to side with Kabila, and South Africa, which opted for mediation. Many Brazzavillois are worried by the prospect of large numbers of DRC refugees and minister Opimbat said the country would not be able to take on the problem alone.