PORT OF SPAAIN, Trinidad, Nov 13, CMC – Search and rescue teams were continuing their task on Friday after the body of a third person, believed to be one of the six reported missing following last Sunday’s boating accident off the north-western peninsula in Trinidad, had been recovered.
Police said that the body of the so far unidentified person was found by patrolling seamen of the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard and that the discovery during the early hours of Friday followed the recovery of second body on Thursday night.
In a brief statement, the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard (TTCG) said that it wanted to assure the public that “search and rescue operations remain ongoing with every effort being made to locate the individuals who remain unaccounted for”.
According to preliminary police reports, the collision involved a 28-foot Bowen pleasure craft named BAMBALEO and a 29-foot Chantelle vessel named BELBAGAI.
The police said that the BAMBALEO was travelling in an easterly direction when it collided with the BELBAGAI, which was heading west and that the impact caused extensive damage to both vessels and sent several passengers into the sea.
The BELBAGAI subsequently sank and the police said nine people from that vessel were brought ashore, while six others required medical attention.
A police spokesman said that the BAMBALEO was carrying 18 people, while the BELBAGAI had 19 people aboard when the vessels collided. He confirmed that all 18 people aboard the BAMBALEO were reported safe, but said five people from the BELBAGAI remained missing.
Police initially reported that five passengers were missing following Sunday’s collision between two pleasure craft near Point Cannings, which left 26 people injured and several passengers thrown into the sea.
The authorities have named those missing as Ameer Mohammed, Keeana Seechan, Lorenzo Oliver, Anil Ahaye and a person named only as Titus.The Coast Guard later said it was verifying information about a possible sixth person, Jaheem Richards, 25, who was unaccounted for.
Earlier on Thursday, the body of Anil Ahyee was recovered and his mother, Elizabeth Ahyee, later told reporters that she was happy for closure.
“I am very pleased that I got my child’s body and I am praying for the others that they receive theirs because as a parent, I wanted closure and I thank God I got it. So to everybody in Trinidad and Tobago, thanks for the support, the prayers…and everybody, be strong,” she said, adding that her son had been “the life of the party”.
Maurice Browne, the step-father of Richards, said that he was unaware that he was on board one of the the vessels, speculating that he may have been struck during the collision.
“I figure he got struck following the collision as something had to happen to him for his body to just disappear just so,” he said.
Malique Rudder, who was among those who survived the ordeal, said that while he was recovering from his injuries, the emotional impact of the incident continued to weigh heavily on him, particularly as he remained uncertain about the whereabouts of his friends.
“To be honest, it’s just traumatising. To be honest, every time I close my eyes, it keeps playing over in my head. Every time I sit down here, I just studying my friends who were there with me, they are no longer here with me.”
CMC/jh/ir/2026