Relatives of six missing East Coast Demerara fishermen were assisted yesterday with an aerial search for their loved ones and two of the families were preparing to check bodies that washed up last week on the Corentyne even as a third corpse was found in the same area during the day.
Agriculture Minister Robert Persaud had promised the aerial surveillance assistance.
Christopher Rooplall, 19, Rameshwar Gagadin, 23, his brother Navendra Gagadin, the boat captain Patrick Parboo, 20, his cousin Davendra Persaud and another man who has since been identified as ‘Buddy’ left for a fishing trip since October 12th and have not returned since.
Five of the six men hail from Marshon, Annandale North. Yesterday family members in the company of two army coast guard ranks conducted an aerial search in the Corentyne area for the missing crewmembers. The search also covered some areas in the Demerara River.
While some relatives of the missing men are still clinging on to hope that their loved ones are still alive some share different views. The families of Patrick Parboo and Davendra Persaud said they are making preparations to travel to Berbice to see if the bodies that washed up there two weeks ago are those of their relatives. As news filtered down that the police had found another body in the Berbice area yesterday the relatives got even more anxious. The mother of Davendra Persaud, Anuradha Persaud said they never opted to view the remains that washed up two weeks ago after hearing the report that the bodies might be those of foreigners. Residents had said that the bodies appeared to be those of Caucasians. It was however pointed out that immersion in the salt water could have led to discolouration of the bodies. The fact that they were bound led some to believe that they may have been victims of piracy.
When Stabroek News visited their homes yesterday, Parboo’s and Persaud’s relatives were making arrangements with the Berbice funeral parlour to visit sometime later today. Anuradha said her son and the other crewmembers would normally make fishing trips to the Corentyne but would only stay at sea for 18 days maximum.
“De food and water dem walk with can only last for 20 days the most
