Four Guyanese are now dead and three others are missing after a boat that was travelling to Guyana from Venezuela capsized sometime early Monday morning off the Orinoco River.
Stabroek News was told that the boat that was Guyana-bound left on Sunday night with 14 persons and cargo. Whilst crossing the border, another boat crashed into it, capsizing it and sending the 14 persons overboard. While seven of the persons were rescued, the others couldn’t be found. With the aid of fishermen and the Venezuelan authorities, four of the bodies were found. The bodies were identified as 40-year-old Simone Khan, 60-year-old Margaret Khan, five-year-old Melissa Khan, and 22- year-old Joel King.
Shelly Adams, King’s mother, told Stabroek News yesterday that the group travelled frequently between Guyana and Venezuela as they would often bring goods over to sell. The grieving woman said she last saw her son last Monday. “It was his first time going and now he ain’t gonna come back,” she said as she wept over the phone.
The seven persons who were rescued initially were returned to Venezuela and the search continues for the other missing three.
At certain times of the year, the crossing between Venezuela and Guyana is treacherous and there have been similar accidents in the past.
