TRAGEDY AT SEA

SHARLENE RAMPERSAD

The search continued last night for three fishermen who were thrown into the sea off Erin Tuesday night during a fishing expedition which ended in tragedy with another fisherman losing his life.

Sheldon Dandre Guerra, 40, died while boat captain Edward Williams, Edmund Charles and Ezekiel Hagley are feared drowned.

Even as villagers assisted the Coast Guard in the search yesterday for the men, fisherman Kibwe Simon, 31, was being hailed a hero as he single-handedly rescued fellow fishermen Joel Seerattan, Kerwyn Primus and Jerome Mitchell from a watery death.

Simon also retrieved Guerra’s body. He did all of this in complete darkness and risked his own life in the process.

At 7 pm, Simon was part of a four-man crew aboard fishing vessel named Lisa with the men pulling in fishing nets just off the Los Iros beach.

About 15 minutes later, another pirogue slammed into the Lisa. Guerra was struck by the other boat and fell into the water.

SHOUTS FOR HELP

Guerra of Carapal Road, Erin worked as a security officer during the day and a crew member on fishing vessels at night.

Simon, who managed to dive from the boat seconds before the impact, was the only person not injured.

“I was sitting in the middle of the boat, exactly where the other boat hit us. I raised up and saw a shape coming dead centre towards our boat and had a chance to shout “boat”, before I dived into the water,” Simon said.

As he resurfaced, Simon heard fishermen shouting in the water. “Our boat was still there, so I started to pick up the guys and push them up on the boat. I found Guerra’s body and pushed him into the boat as well.”

Realising three men were still missing, Simon said he began to search in the water around the badly damaged boat.

“I was looking for them in complete darkness. I was not going to give up, but then I heard one of the injured men bawl out that the boat was sinking.

“I had to make a choice, save those who I already pulled into the boat or risking losing everyone as the boat was sinking,” Simon said. In the end, he climbed into the damaged boat, started the engine and guided it back to shore.

WAITINGAND HOPING

“God guided me back to shore, I don’t know how we didn’t all go down.” Simon, who assisted in overnight efforts to find the missing men, said he is done with the sea. “I will find something else to do. After that experience, I am done with fishing.”

Brenda Balfour and her children were at Erin Beach last evening waiting on news that her husband, boat captain Edward Williams was found. “He was playing with our two-year-old grandson and I looked at him, he was so happy and jolly and I just told him, ‘stay home tonight nah babes’. But he said he had to go pull up the nets,” Balfour said. Balfour said the TT Coast Guard was contacted shortly after the mishap but did not respond until yesterday morning.

Also waiting for news on the beach was Makiah Charles, 17. His father, Edmund is among the missing men.

Makiah said his mother died in 2016 and if his father is not found, he and his 12-year-old sister would be the only ones left in the family.

The Coast Guard last night continued the search for the three.