More trauma for passengers on Essequibo, boat cuts out twice

Passengers on the boat

Passengers were on Wednesday afternoon stranded on the Essequibo River after a boat that left Parika for Supenaam apparently ran short of fuel, the latest in a string of such incidents in the waterway.

The boat began to load at 2 pm and finished around 3.30 pm. Approximately 10 minutes into  its journey the boat stopped. The captain of the boat tried to start the engine and after 30 minutes of trying his efforts proved futile. He then called another boat to come to rescue the passengers however when the other boat arrived he was finally able to get the engine to start.

He then piloted the boat back to Parika and went to a nearby gas station to fuel up. In the meantime passengers were running out of patience and there were several babies on board. The waves were very high and were hitting the boat and passengers became scared.