Survivor found inside capsized Tanzanian ferry two days after disaster on Lake Victoria as coffins arrive for victims

A man has been found alive inside a capsized Tanzanian ferry two days after the disaster on Lake Victoria, while the official death toll rose above 200.

The engineer was found near the engine of the upturned vessel, Mwanza regional commissioner John Mongella said.

He is understood to have shut himself inside the engine room when the vessel turned over.

Rescuers retrieve a body from the water. Credit: AP

But despite that rescue, officials said search efforts on the ferry are now ending so work can focus on identifying the 209 bodies found so far.

Families of victims have gathered at the scene to claim the dead.

The upturned passenger ferry MV Nyerere floats in the water near Ukara Island in Lake Victoria. Credit: AP

It is not known how many people were on board the overloaded ferry, which had a capacity of 101, when it capsized on the final stretch before shore on Thursday afternoon as passengers moved around to prepare to disembark.

President John Magufuli has ordered the arrests of those responsible for what he called a “great disaster for our nation”.