The Ministry of Public Works through Minister of Foreign Affairs Hugh Todd has communicated with governments in the Caribbean to help locate the missing fishing vessel ‘ASEYAH One’ with its four crew members as search efforts continue.
Minister of Public Works Juan Edghill told Stabroek News on Friday that the search diversified to see whether the men were arrested and were in police custody in other countries, hospitalised or the boat was in custody.
It has been almost two months since the four fishermen went missing. The families are still hopeful that they are alive.
The missing crew members are Hazrat Razack also called ‘Denno’, Cicil Persaud, Vickram Singh, and Worrin Yip-sam. On November 16 they went to help one of their red snapper boats from which a distress signal was received. The boat that sent the signal has since returned to shore. Subrina Bahadur, Razack’s daughter, explained that the crew members of the boat that sent out a distress signal said they did not see ‘ASEYAH One’ but instead were rescued by an ExxonMobil vessel and a small boat that was passing.
She told Stabroek News that the families are still hopeful that the men are alive despite the odds and might be in custody in another country. “We didn’t get no indication that the boat capsized, so we still think that they are alive,” she said.
According to Bahadur, the men explained that after they sent out the distress signal, a huge vessel owned by ExxonMobil was seen in the distance and a piece of mattress was lit to capture the attention of the captain and crew members. The men were spotted by the ExxonMobil crew members but because of its size, the Exxon captain maintained a safe distance to prevent the smaller vessel from capsizing. Crew members managed to communicate with Razack, the owner of ‘ASEYAH One’. Razack was informed of their distress and three men accompanied him to rescue the Red Snapper boat. However, the men related that a passing small vessel assisted them to shore, she added.
The family expected the men to return by November 18 and when that day passed, they became worried and contacted the Maritime Administration Department for assistance. “Maritime reached out and sent a radio signal but they did not get any response,” she said.
On December 4 the Guyana Defence Force Coast Guard actively escalated daily sea patrols in a dedicated effort to locate the missing vessel.
Operations were concentrated within Guyana’s maritime space, spanning from the Demerara River to the Waini River mouth. Vessel operations were also extended to target the shoreline within Guyana’s territorial waters.
The Coast Guard also alerted Caribbean counterparts through the Regional Security System to be vigilant for any possible sightings. The Transport and Harbours Department MV Barima (North West Ferry) has also been on the watch for the missing vessel.
