A boat captain who endured a terrifying incident at sea during a recent fishing expedition has revealed his plans to step away from the fishing industry due to the lasting impact of the experience.
Dale Yipsam, 39, from Diamond Housing Scheme, East Bank Demerara, shared his account with the News Room, explaining that he and four crew members set out on February 25 from the Meadow Bank landing site for a 15-day fishing journey, starting their work in the Demerara River.
On Tuesday around 13:00 hours, while trying to access the engine room, Dale was caught off guard by a massive wave that struck the boat, damaging one of its sections. Concerned, he checked and found the vessel tilting to one side without any chance of recovery.
Dale recounted how the wave knocked 37-year-old Ryan Robert, known as “Blue Shirt,” overboard. Fortunately, a seine that had fallen on the deck appeared to provide Ryan with a way to pull himself back onto the boat. Ryan later revealed to his fellow crew members that he had sustained injuries to his feet.
As water began to flood the boat, they pressed on, but within moments, it started to sink. Dale stated that he instructed his crew to grab onto anything they could to stay afloat. Amid the chaos, he managed to tie a rope around Ryan, holding tightly despite the tumultuous waters.
Dale remembered that as the boat continued to go down, the ice box remained visible. He said he urged everyone to cling onto it, and they floated for hours, roughly 10 miles off the Abbary River. They attempted to help Ryan, but the challenging conditions made it increasingly difficult.
‘’He me she he nah gon mek it. Because as the foot break, the two leg them start swelling big. He tell me seh the ‘leg paining bad’ I tell he she ‘Just hold it up, we gon mek it’. We had he and then one big wave come and lash he off the ice box, and that was the disappearance of him,” Dale recounted.
Dale mentioned that after the crew members reconvened, they inquired about Ryan’s whereabouts; however, he was not present. Despite Ryan’s disappearance, the three men continued to hold onto the ice box until they observed a vessel approximately five miles off the Abbey River, Region Five, and signaled for assistance. He indicated that aid arrived around 6:00 hours on Wednesday.
Dale further stated that after reaching the shore, a report was filed at the Mahaicony Police Station. Subsequently, they visited the Mahaicony Public Hospital to seek medical treatment for minor injuries sustained.
The father of two disclosed that he has been engaged in fishing for over ten years, although this was his first voyage as a captain. He affirmed that, in all his years of fishing, he has never encountered such a tragedy.
“It wasn’t a nice experience, and I don’t feel I want to experience it again. That night when the incident happen and I was drifting, and no rescue was coming, I was praying to God that I ain’t want back that kind of feelings anymore. And feel I will quit this work, and I think I will stand by that word. It not gon work out for me no more because from the time I touch down, everything will just keep replaying back,” he revealed.
Dale added that if assistance had not arrived and they had remained in the water for a longer period, only he and one other crew member would have survived.
“I am still traumatized from what happened. Like I don’t even want see back that water top. I don’t even want to touch back that water,’’ he stated.
Dale mentioned that they had caught over 100 snapper and various other fish, but unfortunately, they all vanished during the unfortunate event.
The family members have since organized a search party to locate Ryan.
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