7 News Belize

Coast Guard Did Save One Man
posted (December 27, 2019)
We also spoke with both the Belize Coast Guard and Police about this boat accident and the ensuing search-and-rescue effort.

Although the story has ended in tragedy, there was one positive outcome. The Coast Guard managed to rescue the boat captain who was also flung into the sea with Oscar Cornel Jr. Here's what their operations officer told us today about their quick response to this marine accident:

Lt. Roque Canul - Operations Officer, Belize Coast Guard
"Around 7:10 last night, we got information about a boat collision in an area West of Caye Caulker. We did our best to get as much information as possible, and from then on, we launched operations."

"Apparently, they were supposed to meet in an area behind Caye Caulker. A boat was heading from Ladyville toward Caye Caulker, and then, there was another boat that was supposed to meet them, and that boat was coming from San Pedro. They were supposed to do the transfer, and then, they would go their directions. However, due to poor visibility, they had a collision in that area."

Reporter
"These 2 two sets of individuals were supposed to meet, but they ended up crashing instead, sir?"

Lt. Roque Canul
"Yeah, apparently, that's the information that we received. They belong to the Nautilus Express Tours in San Pedro."

"So far, we've found the captain of the smaller boat, Baby Giselle. He was found stranded in an area named, Cayo Rosario, however, his deckhand is still missing, and he's the person who we're looking at this point in time."

"Based on the weather conditions, once you're in the water, it's hard to stay warm because of the cold weather. So, it's kind of difficult. Thankfully the captain of the smaller boat, he managed to swim to the island. But, with regard to the other person, I don't know if he fell unconscious. So, that's what's making it difficult for us at this point in time."

"We're still doing our efforts to find a missing person, praying that we find him in the best of health, perhaps stranded on one of those islands. Since then, we've been launching operations. We have 2 units in the area doing search operations at this point in time."

"The units on the ground, they've received search areas that they will be conducting the search in. From what appears, it seems that we have a south-westerly drift. So, that's the area where we'll be focusing on for the next couple of hours."

According to reports, Mario Rosales was hospitalized at the KHMH.

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