Coast Guard's deathly silence

WHAT happened to Keiron Simon?

Almost two weeks after the Coast Guard issued an official statement on February 21 confirming the loss of the able seaman in a boarding operation which saw three foreign nationals arrested, the public still does not have a clear enough idea.

According to the Coast Guard, Mr Simon was one of two of its members on-board a vessel of interest when “rough seas” caused it to submerge, taking him with it. The other sailor was “quickly retrieved,” but the vessel sank; efforts to secure lines “proved futile due to its size.”

Officials assured that “further details on the incident will be provided as the situation develops.”

But since then, almost two weeks later, there has been silence. The object sank and, apparently, so have all answers.

Minister of National Security Fitzgerald Hinds has even been quoted in the media as saying the rescue mission turned into one of recovery, while the Coast Guard itself said nothing.

This is part of a pattern. Initial statements are issued. And then details dry up.

“Service before self” – that is the Coast Guard motto. With Mr Simon it has, chillingly, become a fatal reality. All members of the protective services, from police officers to firefighters, must contend with the risk of death.

However, just because this is part of the job does not mean there should not be full accountability and transparency. In fact, it is the opposite.

Could additional steps have been taken to mitigate risks?

Complicating this incident are its multinational and law enforcement elements. Yet, such elements are what you would expect the Coast Guard to be dealing with routinely. They provide no reason for blanket silence. The management of any sensitive information should be separated from surrounding events.

Ensuring the safety and security of our nation’s waters is the mandate of our maritime force. But the operational capacity to do just that is, too often, in doubt, something also seen with the botched attempt to tow a mysterious pirogue on January 26 and the lengthy recovery of a rig worker’s body.

Rigorous physical and theoretical training prepares Coast Guard divers to find and salvage anything.

In this regard, whatever the causes of the delay in accountability as it relates to recovery efforts, it is worrying that more has not been heard. Mr Hinds assures all available technologies are being deployed and cross-border collaboration is happening. Yet, Mother Nature seemingly prevails.

While finding that which is missing – possibly irretrievably – might be key, a fuller picture of this operation and what lessons, if any, could be gleaned is required, if only for the sake of sailors who might one day have to board a vessel of interest as Mr Simon did.