Pandemonium broke out yesterday midday amongst passengers when a speedboat that was transporting passengers across the Essequibo River developed a leak and started to take in water.
The incident occurred between 12:20-12:30 hours between Parika and Supenaam. The boat at the time had 20 passengers plus the captain and a crew member.
According to information reaching Stabroek News, the boat was transporting Moruca, North West District-bound athletes who had participated in the Heritage Games in the city. The boat which had departed Parika was nearing Supenaam when the incident occurred. In a phone interview with Stabroek News, Dawn a passenger, explained that about 20 minutes into the journey, water was pouring into the boat, “… we was travelling and then the bottom of the boat bore and water started coming in really fast.”
“The entire bottom of the boat started to take in water, it was terrifying and all our things started to wet up, we were very scared and the entire thing started to shake up. We were trying to save ourselves and our valuables,” another passenger said. The boat captain advised the passengers to remain calm, meanwhile, two other boats that were in the vicinity of the listing boat were informed and were able to render assistance to the passengers. According to reports, all of the passengers had on life-jackets.
Other passengers were thankful for their survival and happy that nothing worst had happened. The passengers were transported to Supenaam safely.
MARAD Captain, Courtney McDonald, in a phone interview with Stabroek News said that an investigation has been launched into the incident. The captain is currently being investigated and would not be able to operate until the investigation is completed. In light of the near tragedy, the passengers are insisting that MARAD ensure that boats plying the area with passengers are constantly checked and maintained to ensure seaworthiness.
