A collision between a Transport and Harbours Department (T&HD) vessel MV Sandaka and a privately-owned passenger boat Akeela on Thursday afternoon is currently being probed by maritime authorities.
The accident occurred at approximately 3:50pm on Thursday near the Parika Stelling in the Essequibo River as the MV Sandaka was attempting to moor.
According to a statement from the T&HD, the Sandaka, which plies Leguan to Parika route, was trying to moor alongside the stelling while the Akeela was already positioned in the reserved space for T&HD vessels and refused to move. At the time, the Akeela, which serves the Parika—Wakenaam–Supenaam route had approximately 23 persons on board and the statement said that as the collision seemed imminent when the MV Sandaka was approaching several of those passengers jumped overboard.
There were no fatalities, T&HD noted, but there were some minor injuries to some passengers and damage to the vessel Akeela. There were no damages to MV Sandaka. The collision is currently under investigation by the Maritime Administration Department (MARAD) and T&HD.
