A nine-year-old schoolgirl is dead and a boat captain missing after the small vessel they were travelling in was run over by a larger boat at Canal Bank, Port Kaituma sometime after 8 last night.
Confirmed dead is Nikesha James of Canal Bank, while police and a search party were still combing the dark river water for Phillip Adams, who is also a resident of Canal Bank. The bigger boat fled the scene without stopping to offer any assistance to those who were thrown into the water.
Stabroek News was told that the child and about nine family members were heading home from her brother’s wedding reception. They were heading to Burma Landing to pick up James’s sister when they were run over by a 200 horse power engine boat.
Meanwhile, James’ sister Niketta said she was standing on the landing waiting to be picked up. She saw the boat with her sister and other relatives approaching the landing, when the larger vessel took off with a speed running them over.
The young woman said there two men in the larger vessel who were intoxicated. She added that they were in the company of two females. According to Niketta,