Dear Editor,
One of the fastest ways to reach certain parts of Guyana is by boat. Whilst numerous lives have been lost on our roadways, quite a lot have been lost as a consequence of boat accidents. Recently I’ve been travelling to Charity quite a lot, and in order to get there I have to travel by speedboat from Parika to Supenaam, then take a taxi to Charity. Sunday October 2 was my latest visit, and about five minutes after we left the Parika stelling the speedboat hit a wave which caused the boat to start swerving dangerously. It tilted close to capsizing on the left side (port side) and all the passengers were thrown to that side which caused nearly everyone to be scared some of whom voiced their opinion openly.
For the time that I’ve been travelling to and from Charity we’ve had a few scares, but the latest incident was very alarming and needs to be addressed. During my journeys, I always seize the opportunity to ask about the Region and the residents’ way of life, etc, and I also talk about my observations on the reckless usage of both the waterways and roadways. Most of what I gathered was from speedboat captains and drivers.
Just Google “boat accident ‘Guyana’” and see how many accidents have been caused by boats and how many lives have been lost. A lot of rules were introduced or reintroduced for the speedboats and systems were put in place a while back, but sadly somewhere along the line these lapsed and lawlessness prevails. Amongst the changes, monitors were put at the various stellings and I was under the impression that they were to ensure that all safety rules were in place before the boat left, but according to my observations, that is not the case. The monitor for the Bartica boats could be seen sitting at various locations, sometimes in the stelling under the shed and out of sight of the boat that is loading. He asks everyone passing if they are travelling to Bartica, and if they are, he has to list their names. However, someone travelling could refuse, and still board the boat because the monitor is out of sight of the boat.
The boat we travelled with on Sunday had Perspex windows and on the front one it was clearly stated that only twenty-five passengers are allowed on the boat; however, the boat left Parika with twenty-eight passengers plus the captain and bowman. Although the bowman and captain requested that everyone put on a life jacket, many of the passengers chose not to, and again no monitor was present to ensure that everyone had a jacket on before leaving.
When you reach Supenaam, you pay either the bowman or the captain when you disembark, and if you are journeying back to Parika from Supenaam, you have to pay the fare before the boat leaves Supenaam. Why is that? All the speedboats operating at the Parika stelling would usually travel at the maximum speed of the engine, and some boats have two engines (in some cases each engine might have a lower horsepower than the boats with a single engine) According to some, the boats which have two engines of different horsepower are dangerous to control, especially when the water is rough, because both engines would be at their maximum speeds and one would be pushing more than the other which would cause the boat to be pull to one side. Should a wave hit the weaker side, it could capsize the boat or make it sway dangerously, as happened last Sunday. I should mention that twice the same boat had to go close to land because they were experiencing mechanical problems, and I know that people have to live but why risk people’s lives? If the water is rough and one of the engines cannot work, it would be extremely hard to control the boat because the working engine would be on one side of the boat and everyone knows that steering a boat with one engine that is not in the middle is taking a chance. That is why most of the boats plying the Vreed-en-Hoop-Georgetown route have to travel at a slow speed.
Many passengers crossing there could verify what I’m saying about when the water is rough and the boats sway dangerously. Because the water is rough sometimes, the boats tend to bounce a lot and the seats are only fitted with what seems to be either ½ or ¾ inch sponge, and that is every uncomfortable for passengers, especially those sitting at the front of the boat. It’s not advisable to allow sick people, women, children or old people there, but because of the uncaring attitudes of the operators, they don’t advise people where to sit. Owing to the constant jarring of the boats, they get shaky, and many have leaks while others have water coming in from the shed and soaking you.
Finally Editor, most boat operators would tell you that it costs between thirty to sixty thousand dollars for them to obtain their captain’s licence. However, many of them cannot control a boat properly and I’ve always wondered what sort of test those desirous of obtaining a captain’s licence have to undergo. Whilst it might look simple to just start an engine, shift it in gear and go, it’s very challenging to control a boat in rough water while travelling at high speed. Based on my observations, some captains cannot ride a wave properly and in most cases they don’t even slow the boat down when they see extremely high waves; they just charge through and that is a dangerous way to go. There’s much nonsense happening at the stellings and these issues need to be addressed. They must be consistent and not just wait for something to happen and then appoint an army retiree to conduct a CoI to tell us what we already know and then make recommendations. Many of these problems were there before the change of government, and this present administration knew about these problems.
The President can use his better judgment and appoint people to manage certain areas, and they should ensure that things are in place for people to travel safely. Not when lives are lost do you come out as if you’ve just awakened and discover these problems; you cannot put systems in place which only last for a period of time and then expect everything to be ok. I should also state that I leave Supenaam after 6.30pm in darkness.
Yours faithfully,
Sahadeo Bates
