Relatives of the two Rosignol, West Bank Berbice fishermen; Mahendra ‘Rub’ Ompertab, 27, and Kanhai Madramootoo, 41 who disappeared at sea two Saturdays ago are grateful for the support they have received from persons.
The Bush Lot United Sports Club was among the first to make a monetary donation to Ompertab’s wife, Debbie for her three children; Esha, 9, Hafeeza, 7 and four-year-old Hafeez. The club also presented a school bag with stationery to the eldest child.
President of the club, Rabindranauth Saywack who presented the items to them said the bag was part of the club’s project to assist underprivileged children in West Berbice.
He was happy to be able to relieve part of the burden from Debbie, regarding purchasing of school supplies.
Debbie expressed gratitude to the club as well as to the Save a Life Foundation, a new humanitarian organization in Connecticut, USA that includes a group of Guyanese. Executive member, Majeed Shariff said the organization gladly agreed to help after learning about the plight of the family from this newspaper.
He also provided monetary assistance to the family to complete the purchasing of school items and to cover a part of the expense for the search.
Debbie was grateful for the support and contribution she was receiving from the “brothers and sisters from the Muslim community. They really stand up for me during this difficult time and I cannot thank them enough.”
She also mentioned the help she got from some of the fishermen during the search. “From the time they got the gas they were willing to go out.”
Her sister-in-law, Shielawattie Ramotar; Madramootoo’s wife also received some assistance for her nine-year-old daughter, Farida Ramotar and was happy.
Fishing line
Both women were deeply distressed that their husbands had not returned home after they left on August 18 but were not giving up hope that they may show up alive.
They said that around 3 pm on Tuesday they received a call that fishermen had found a pile of fishing line attached to “salt-bag” out at sea and had brought it to the Rosignol fisheries.
Despite a massive search for the men at sea and along the shore, that was the first trace of them that was picked up.
Along with other relatives, the two women rushed to the fisheries and confirmed that the line belonged to Ompertab.
The fishermen related that the line was found at the same spot where the men would normally fish. But even that did not convince Debbie that they could be dead.
“Up to now no engine, no boat or even the flags can’t find; that is something that is beating me. I can’t understand what happened… That is why I still believe that they were taken away alive somewhere… Maybe my mind is playing tricks on me,” she told this newspaper.
Debbie said her two older children miss their father but are “taking it light” while the youngest, a boy, keeps saying his father is working at sea and would return home.
Ramotar said her daughter, Farida misses her father so much that she has started to wear his shirt to sleep in, hoping that it would bring some comfort.
Ompertab and Madramootoo, left the Rosignol wharf around 6:30 am in a small red and white boat that was fitted with a 40-hp engine along. They were expected to return around 3:30 pm.
Relatives contacted the Agriculture Ministry to see what assistance they could give in relation to the search and were promised that the officers from the fisheries department would return their call and would visit them.
Debbie said her husband is a kind and helpful person and was always around to spend time with her and the children. “He would only leave home to go to the masjid in the afternoon.”
She is “finding it hard that he is not around. During the day I would only go upstairs to pray and when I notice his clothes I would start to cry. People encouraging me but like something is missing from me…”
The woman lamented too that “if we bin find the body ah woulda have peace of mind. I have emptiness inside…”
Ramotar said she too is becoming more distressed when she sees her husband’s clothes. She recalled that the “last thing he tell me before he left was that he would slash the yard when he come back.” He loves cook-up and she cooked that for him the same day he disappeared.
She became worried after he did not return that night but because he had spent two and three nights at sea before when they developed engine problems she felt he would be fine.
