Georgetown : A team comprising members of the Maritime Rescue Coordination Center (MRCC) and the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Coast Guard (CG) will be meeting this morning with the fishermen who were recently attacked by pirates in the Pomeroon River earlier this month.
Martime Department, Harbour Master, Velton said that discussions at this meeting will focus on the way forward with regards to ensuring that fishing, the livelihood of a significant number of people in Guyana, is done in a more protected manner; key among which is the provision of better security with the establishment of a structured check-in-point.
The Maritime Department continues to focus on the matter; while the police are gathering information from the rescued men, who are cooperating and providing details with regards to what transpired.
All of the fishermen are accounted for; 15 were rescued and no lives were lost but two boats were badly wrecked in the attack. Nevertheless, another aerial reconnaissance was conducted in the Pomeroon River to determine whether more fishermen were stranded, but none was spotted.
Skeete added that the implementation of the Global Positioning System (GPS) on fishing boats is also being considered so as to be able to identify the location of fishing crews in the event of an incident such as a pirate attack. This will enable the relevant authorities to respond more promptly and efficiently.
Approximately 15 fishing boats with a total number of 19 crew men were attacked between February 3rd to 4th, off the coast of the Pomeroon River. Subsequently that day, the Maritime Search and Rescue Centre was activated and, wiith the help of the police and the army coastguard, the centre was able to rescue three persons.
Public Works Minister, Robeson Benn is calling on anyone with information on the recent pirate activity, or who has suspicions of any illegal activity which may be linked to the latest pirate attack, to contact the nearest police station, the Coast Guard and or the Maritime Administration.
You must be logged in to post a comment.