Two feared dead as fishing vessel sinks at sea

Tema, (Greater Accra) 6th May ?99,

A fishing vessel, M/V Hera, is reported to have capsized and sunk at deep sea around Gomoa Fete last Monday night during a fishing expedition.

Mr Yeboah Afari, General Manager of Radusta Enterprise, owners of the vessel being managed by Holiday Fishing Company told newsmen that 23 of the 25 crew members on board were rescued with the remaining two still missing.

The names of those missing are Mr George Wilson, a sailor, and Mr Harrison Nogbey, a cook.

Captain Livingstone Ahiabor, who was in charge of the vessel, is now on admission at a private clinic in Tema, while the rest have been treated and discharged.

Mr Afari said reports gathered from the sailors showed that the vessel sank in a matter of 30 minutes, without any water leakage.

"All that the crew saw was that the back of the vessel was going down; then, it listed. Realising the seriousness of the situation, the crew began to fight to save their lives. The vessel sank at longitude 14.5 degrees West," he said.

Mr Afari said that it normally takes between three to five days for a vessel that is taking in water to sink. The "sudden sinking" of the vessel appeared to have made the crew not to think of relaying any SOS message, even though, their communication equipment was in perfect condition.

Mr Afari said some of the crew stayed in water for over 22 hours before either canoe fishermen or other fishing vessels rescued them, some from as far off as Kpone.

He expressed surprise that Mr Nogbey, who was alleged to have used a life buoy and jumped into the sea, cannot still be traced.