The family of Gerald Fraser, the cook who was aboard cargo vessel Miss Elissa that capsized in the Demerara River last Friday afternoon, has given up hope that he will ever be found.
Fraser, 67, was one of seven persons onboard the vessel which had earlier departed the Muneshwer’s Wharf for Trinidad and Tobago.
Relatives of the seaman told this newspaper briefly yesterday that they have searched extensively for him along with the authorities but it appears he will never be found. A relative said that there were suggestions that he might have been trapped in the upturned vessel but divers had scoured the area thoroughly and have not found Fraser. The relative said too that if indeed he was trapped in the vessel, his body would started decomposing and “we woulda been smellin he by now.”
While this newspaper could not contact the GDF Coastguard or the Harbour Master yesterday, reports are that search efforts have continued daily for the man, while marine vessels have been told to be on the lookout for his body.
The owner of the vessel is also working with the authorities to have the vessel righted, a maritime source said yesterday.
Captain of the vessel, Justin Bynoe, told this newspaper this week that the boat left the harbour some time around 4.45 pm last Friday. He said the vessel started to experience technical difficulties and it was decided that they would return to shore. “When going back the cargo shift and the ship start to twist and next thing we know it was capsizing,” he recounted.
The man, who had been working on the vessel for over six months, could not say what the nature of the technical difficulties were that the vessel was experiencing at the time the decision was made to turn around.
The 130-foot long cargo vessel has since been shifted from the river channel to facilitate river traffic.
On Friday evening, the teams on site called off search and rescue efforts close to an hour and a half after the boat capsized. This move drew criticisms from persons at the scene who said that the authorities appeared ill-prepared to address the situation. MARAD Director Stephen Thomas told the media then that it was unsafe to continue the search. Thomas said there were no dedicated divers the organisation could have called upon for assistance.
Miss Elissa was transporting coconuts, wallaba poles and rice to the Caribbean island when the incident occurred.
