The Maritime Administra-tion Department (MARAD) has reported that all of the crew of the vessel Capt Saif, which capsized in the Waini River on Saturday evening, have been rescued and are safe.
MARAD and the Guyana Police Force had earlier reported that one of the four crewmembers was missing and the police had identified the missing man as Guy Roach, 54, of Kitty, Georgetown.
In a press release issued last night, MARAD said that all of the crewmembers had been rescued and were safely ashore and reunited with their families.
According to MARAD, investigations thus far revealed that Capt Saif departed at approximately 07:15 hrs on Saturday from the Guyana Fertilizer Company Limited Wharf, Georgetown and was destined for Port Kaituma, Region One. On board were Captain Nyshel Singh, purser/charterer Mr Reid and two sailors.
During the voyage, the vessel developed a list which the crew attempted to rectify, but apparently the vessel was unstable, MARAD said.
At approximately 22:45 hours, the vessel began listing rapidly to port and the crew then jettisoned some of the cargo from the said port side, but their efforts were futile as the vessel continued listing to port and capsized, then completely turned over with its bottom in the air, the release said.
Three of the four crew members were rescued by a passing fishing boat on Sunday, MARAD said, while the fourth crew member was rescued sometime later.
The release said that at this early stage of the investigation, the evidence available suggests that the vessel may have been loaded with poor stability, thus it was unstable.
A full investigation is underway.
