–says Captain Flores as search continues for missing fishermen

AS the search continues for three fishermen who are feared drowned, Captain John Flores, Director of Maritime Safety at the Maritime Administration Department (MARAD) told the Sunday Chronicle that the teams being deployed are exploring the possibility that the vessel may have sunk deeper than initially anticipated.

Over the past six days, a search-and-rescue team has been trying to locate the missing men. The team has been using a vessel from MARAD and two trawlers from Noble House Seafoods, the company that owns the sunken vessel, to aid search efforts.

Captain Flores told the Sunday Chronicle that the team has been widening its search area from the last triangulated location of the vessel, making room for any potential movement of the vessel caused by a change in tide.

Missing are Captain Harold Anthony Damon, 45; crew member Ronald Burton, 78, and Winston Sam, 46. Damon, the father of three, and Burton, a father of 10, are residents of Agricola, East Bank Demerara.

According to information provided by Vincent Dazzell, who survived the ordeal and was rescued by a passing vessel, the seabob trawler capsized and sank some 26 miles from the Mahaica River offshore Guyana last week Saturday.

According to reports, the missing fishermen may be trapped underneath the overturned vessel.

Dazzell had told relatives of the missing men and the police that he and his colleagues had noticed that the vessel was taking in water in the engine room and elsewhere, but there was nothing they could do to staunch the leaks at the time.

He said the captain had tried to make contact with ‘Noble House’ to relate what had happened, but the radio transmission had become became distorted. Dazzell said the captain was searching for his cellphone when the vessel capsized, causing everyone on board to leap overboard.

Dazzell further related that the captain and others began shouting for help, and it was a nearby fishing vessel that heard their calls and rushed to help. However, he was the only one that was found.

In a statement released last week, ‘Noble House’ said it was deeply saddened by the incident involving the four-man crew and motor vessel, WorldFriends 307, and that it is concerned about the disappearance of the three crew members.

The company explained that upon learning of the incident, management met with relatives of the missing men, and will continue to inform them of all developments as they unfold.

Meanwhile, Minister of Home Affairs Robeson Benn recently told the media that contrary to reports, ‘Noble House’ had not informed the relevant authorities that the vessel was in distress. He said that the first report was made 24 hours after the vessel had sunk.

“Our understanding is that there was no information passed on to the lighthouse or MARAD of the accident; it was approximately 24 hours before there was any official knowledge of the incident,” Minister Benn said, adding that the first inkling the authorities had that there was an accident at sea was when ranks at the Mahaica Police Station reported the rescue of the lone survivor.

Further, MARAD Director-General Stephen Thomas had explained to the media recently that difficulties at sea are expected to be made known to the agency by those on the vessel by way of a distress signal on an emergency channel.

“All vessels are required to have a card with the distress procedure; so, should there be an emergency, they would call all stations. Any vessel within the vicinity would hear them, and come to their assistance,” Thomas said, adding: “We have so far had no record of calls being made from the vessel on the emergency channel.”

Last Monday, during a joint media briefing held by Minister Benn and Minister within the Ministry of Public Works Deodat Indar, it was disclosed that a seven-member multi-agency Board of Inquiry (BoI) has been set up to investigate the circumstances that led to the mishap offshore.

The members of BoI are Mr. Yulander Hughes of the Transport and Harbours Department (T&HD); Captain Flores; Mr. Ronald Charles of the Ministry of Public Works; Lt. Rawle Williams of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF)’s Coast Guard; Senior Superintendent Ewart Wray of the Guyana Police Force’s Marine Unit; Mr. Dwayne Vyphuis of the Ministry of Labour; and Mr. Denzil Roberts, who is Head of the Fisheries Department at the Ministry of Agriculture.