Archive for April 18th, 2014
2 men lost at sea, 2 rescued
(CNS): Two of four men aboard a boat that got into difficulty some 30 miles off the coast of Grand Cayman on Wednesday night are believed lost at sea after the RCIPS called off the 24 hour sea search on Thursday night. The men had left the safety of their vessel a short time before the Marine Unit and the police helicopter arrived in order to look for an emergency pack dropped by a US Coast Guard plane. The two men who stayed aboard were rescued by the local police and taken to the George Town hospital, where they were treated and released to the authorities. Police said the men are from two different Central American countries and the RCIPS is now conducting enquiries into the matter.
The boat came to the attention of the local authorities on Wednesday night when local air traffic control staff received a message from a US Coast Guard plane that had spotted flares sent up by the men. They dropped the lifesaving pack and alerted the Cayman tower, which then contacted the police.
The Marine Unit and police helicopter were immediately dispatched to the area some 30 miles of the southeast coast, where they found two men aboard the boat but were informed two other men were in the ocean and a search began. After a full day of searching the area the RCIPS officially called off the search, which had involved not just Marine Unit vessels and the police helicopter but the USCG aircraft as well.
"We got on scene within a few hours of being notified of the boat being found,” Marine Commander, Inspector Yearwood said. “Once it was learned that two of the crew had gotten into the water, we immediately commenced searching for them. We used all equipment at our disposal to locate the two men. The vessel was said to have been at sea for several days and with the large amount of marine life seen around the vessel it is unlikely we would still find them.”
It was apparent that the two entered the water to recover a package with life-saving equipment dropped by the USCG. They never returned to the boat.
Officials have still not stated what the four men were doing at sea and whether or not the two now in Grand Cayman are under suspicion of drug trafficking.