A fisherman was up to press time last night feared drowned after his crew mates awoke yesterday morning and discovered that he was missing from the trawler which was drifting in the Atlantic Ocean off the North West Coast line.
The man, whose name was only given as Kahar was said to be from the De Willem, West Coast Demerara area. This newspaper was unable to make contact with his relatives.
Police were unable to provide much information on the incident when contacted by Stabroek News, but according to several senior officers a team was sent into the area to conduct investigations. Up to late yesterday afternoon, the officers said, the information was still sketchy.
From all indications, a crew of seven including the captain went out on the trawler – Divinity 111 — nearly a week ago and made their way out into the Atlantic. The disappearance occurred between Wednesday night and early yesterday morning.
At the Houston Wharf where the vessel was moored, several police officers were onboard along with the owner and the captain, when this newspaper arrived shortly after 5 pm yesterday.
The owner whose name was given as Lydon Connelly when approached said it was “too premature” to speak with the media and he was not in a position “to make the issue public”.
The man’s nephew, who was on board the vessel, later spoke on the incident. He said the Divinity 111 is a sea-bob vessel and recounted that the seven-man crew went to bed shortly before 11 pm on Wednesday, leaving the “drag” (nets) floating in the rough waters of the Atlantic Ocean. He said that as per normal, he and his colleagues were expected to wake up some four hours later to pull up the catch. The man, who did not state his name, said the vessel was cruising along the sea several miles off the coast of the Pomeroon/Waini area at the time.
He said the captain and crew got up around 3 am yesterday and soon realised that one man was missing. According to him, the captain immediately sounded the alarm and the team scoured the nearby waters for the missing fisherman. This was done until daylight when they headed to shore in order to report the matter to the authorities.
The man said that the crew was of the view that the missing man may have woken up during the night in order to relieve himself “on the rails” at the back of the vessel, which he said fishermen usually did, rather than use the washroom inside the vessel. However, he added that when anyone did this another crew member would normally “keep watch” as the waters are usually very rough.
The man said their voyage began some six days ago and they were expected to return to shore this morning in order to sell their catch. He said the captain “pulled on” the missing fisherman for the trip only a few days prior to the vessel’s departure, adding that while the man worked on other vessels, it was his first trip on the Divinity 111.
