The
MV Umoja is a
ferryA ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...
that serves
Lake VictoriaLake Victoria or Victoria Nyanza is one of the African Great Lakes. The lake was named after the United Kingdom's Queen Victoria, by John Hanning Speke, the first European to see the lake....
in
AfricaAfrica is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area. With a billion people in 61 territories, it accounts for about 14.8% of the...
. It is best known for having been featured in a book by
Paul TherouxPaul Edward Theroux is an American travel writer and novelist, whose best known work is, perhaps, The Great Railway Bazaar , a travelogue about a trip he made by train from the United Kingdom through Western and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, through South Asia, then South-East Asia, up through...
and for several recent accidents.
The
Umoja was built by
Yarrow ShipbuildersYarrow , Limited , often styled as simply Yarrows, was a major shipyard, now part of BVT Surface Fleet, a joint venture between BAE Systems and VT Group, which also includes the nearby Govan shipyard...
in
ScotstounScotstoun is a historic district of Glasgow, Scotland, west of Glasgow City Centre. It is bounded by Yoker and Knightswood to the west, Victoria Park , Broomhill and Whiteinch to the east, Jordanhill to the north and the River Clyde to the south...
,
GlasgowGlasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
,
ScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
in 1965 as a railway wagon ferry. It is presently owned by
East African Railways and Harbours CorporationThe East African Railways and Harbours Corporation evolved from the Uganda Railway in Kenya and Uganda and the railways of Tanganyika between the World War I and 1977 when the East African Community dissolved....
and its port of registry is
KisumuKisumu is a port city in western Kenya at , with a population of 355,024 . It is the third largest city in Kenya, the principal city of western Kenya, the capital of Nyanza Province and the headquarters of Kisumu District. It has no municipal charter...
,
KenyaThe Republic of Kenya is a country in East Africa. Lying along the Indian Ocean, at the equator, Kenya is bordered by Ethiopia , Somalia , Tanzania , Uganda plus Lake Victoria , and Sudan . The capital city is Nairobi. Kenya spans an area about 85% the size of France or Texas...
, on Lake Victoria. It operates between
JinjaJinja may be:* Jinja, Uganda, a city in eastern Uganda close to the source of the Nile River* Jinja District, the district in Uganda named after the above city* Jinja , a Shinto shrine* Jinja , a Template engine...
,
MwanzaMwanza is a city in northwest Tanzania and a southern port of Lake Victoria. The region is located between latitude 10 30' and 30 south of the Equator. Longitudinally the region is located between 310 45' and 340 10' East of Greenwich. Regions bordering Mwanza region are Kagera to the West,...
,
MusomaMusoma is a city located in northern Tanzania. It is the capital of Mara Region. It has a population of 103,497 . Musoma sits on the eastern edge of Lake Victoria not far from the Kenyan border...
, and Kisumu along with its sister vessel the
Uhuru.
The
MV Umoja is a
ferryA ferry is a form of transportation, usually a boat, but sometimes a ship, used to carry primarily passengers, and sometimes vehicles and cargo as well, across a body of water. Most ferries operate on regular, frequent, return services...
that serves
Lake VictoriaLake Victoria or Victoria Nyanza is one of the African Great Lakes. The lake was named after the United Kingdom's Queen Victoria, by John Hanning Speke, the first European to see the lake....
in
AfricaAfrica is the world's second-largest and second most-populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area. With a billion people in 61 territories, it accounts for about 14.8% of the...
. It is best known for having been featured in a book by
Paul TherouxPaul Edward Theroux is an American travel writer and novelist, whose best known work is, perhaps, The Great Railway Bazaar , a travelogue about a trip he made by train from the United Kingdom through Western and Eastern Europe, the Middle East, through South Asia, then South-East Asia, up through...
and for several recent accidents.
The
Umoja was built by
Yarrow ShipbuildersYarrow , Limited , often styled as simply Yarrows, was a major shipyard, now part of BVT Surface Fleet, a joint venture between BAE Systems and VT Group, which also includes the nearby Govan shipyard...
in
ScotstounScotstoun is a historic district of Glasgow, Scotland, west of Glasgow City Centre. It is bounded by Yoker and Knightswood to the west, Victoria Park , Broomhill and Whiteinch to the east, Jordanhill to the north and the River Clyde to the south...
,
GlasgowGlasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
,
ScotlandScotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the...
in 1965 as a railway wagon ferry. It is presently owned by
East African Railways and Harbours CorporationThe East African Railways and Harbours Corporation evolved from the Uganda Railway in Kenya and Uganda and the railways of Tanganyika between the World War I and 1977 when the East African Community dissolved....
and its port of registry is
KisumuKisumu is a port city in western Kenya at , with a population of 355,024 . It is the third largest city in Kenya, the principal city of western Kenya, the capital of Nyanza Province and the headquarters of Kisumu District. It has no municipal charter...
,
KenyaThe Republic of Kenya is a country in East Africa. Lying along the Indian Ocean, at the equator, Kenya is bordered by Ethiopia , Somalia , Tanzania , Uganda plus Lake Victoria , and Sudan . The capital city is Nairobi. Kenya spans an area about 85% the size of France or Texas...
, on Lake Victoria. It operates between
JinjaJinja may be:* Jinja, Uganda, a city in eastern Uganda close to the source of the Nile River* Jinja District, the district in Uganda named after the above city* Jinja , a Shinto shrine* Jinja , a Template engine...
,
MwanzaMwanza is a city in northwest Tanzania and a southern port of Lake Victoria. The region is located between latitude 10 30' and 30 south of the Equator. Longitudinally the region is located between 310 45' and 340 10' East of Greenwich. Regions bordering Mwanza region are Kagera to the West,...
,
MusomaMusoma is a city located in northern Tanzania. It is the capital of Mara Region. It has a population of 103,497 . Musoma sits on the eastern edge of Lake Victoria not far from the Kenyan border...
, and Kisumu along with its sister vessel the
Uhuru. "Umoja" means "unity" in the
Swahili languageSwahili is spoken by various ethnic groups that inhabit several large stretches of the Indian Ocean coastline from southern Somalia to northern Mozambique, including the Comoros Islands...
.
In
Dark Star Safari, Theroux gives an account of a journey on Lake Victoria aboard the
Umoja, detailing the hazards from out-of-date charts and emphasising the friendliness and competence of the crew.
The Umoja struck rocks in 1990, 1996, and 2002. The 2002 accident caused $160,000 in damage
http://www.nationaudio.com/News/EastAfrican/11032002/Maritime/Maritime0.html.