BASSETERRE, St. Kitts – FOLLOWING Wednesday afternoon’s (Apr. 2) unfortunate watery death of Rudolph 'Tone' Dowell of Pond’s Extension and Maxwell Browne of New Road, a number of questions have been raised but no official answer has so far been given.
At about 5:15 p.m. on that fateful day, Dowell and Browne drowned in the Caribbean Sea in the vicinity of Port Zante after the boat in which they were capsized while they were in the process of releasing the lines for the departure of one of two cruise ships that visited St. Kitts.
Dowell was an employee of the St. Christopher Air and Sea Ports Authority (SCASPA) and Browne, captain of the capsized vessel named PIX, was an employee of S.L. Horsford & Co. Ltd.
It is said that Dowell at the time of his demise was performing his regular duties as a linesman, while the PIX, owned by S.L. Horsford, was contracted to the ships’ local agents, Delisle Walwyn & Co. Ltd. to transport Dowell to carry out his duties.
This publication learnt divers from the Newtown area had retrieved the men’s bodies later that evening and they were pronounced dead by District Medical Officer Dr. Mervyn Laws.
A police communiqué issued hours after the incident, stated that the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force, St. Kitts and Nevis Defence Force’s Coast Guard and the SCASPA were jointly conducting investigations into the matter.
However, on Thursday (Apr. 3), the Minister of International Transport, Senator Richard ‘Ricky’ Skerritt, told media representatives at a press briefing that he was in contact with a senior official of the ships’ owners in Miami, Florida, who pledged to assist the authorities with their investigations.
“Video footage from the security camera system of the second berthed cruise ship which was due to leave port one hour later, will be made available by early next week for review by the Royal St. Christopher and Nevis Police Force. I am also aware that the Masters of both ships have already emailed their written reports on the incident,” Minister Skerritt explained.
He also reported to the press that two maritime safety officials of Royal Caribbean Cruise Lines, the owners of the two cruise ships, Independence of the Seas and Silhouette, are expected to arrive in St. Kitts within the next few days to assist police and maritime officials with their investigation.
The Transport Minister however did not field questions from the media, stating that “Because the police are still in their early stages of their investigation and out of respect of the grieving families of the three deceased from both incidents, we are not in a position to entertain any questions on these investigations at this time. I think that you will understand that this is a very difficult time for all concerned”.
The third deceased to whom the Minister referred is the late Askeo Farrell, also known as Askeo Jeffers and Ras Jahred, who reportedly died of traumatic shock as a result of thoracic fractures.
The 31-year-old West Farm resident, who was also a SCASPA’s employee, was discovered dead in the elevator shaft at the Robert Llewellyn Bradshaw International Airport on Sunday (Mar. 30).
On the day after the incident, this publication spoke to a number of persons including one of SCASPA’s Linesmen, who on condition of anonymity declared that for an extensive period concerns were been raised about the dangers of the job and relative issues.
He explained that in addition to the remuneration being small, there are not enough measures in place to mitigate safety, security and other concerns.
“There are many concerns. We have raised these concerns with those in authority but nothing has been said or done. We are concerned about safety, money and risk pay. We are risking our lives every time we go out to sea and do our job, so at least there needs to be some things put in place.”
Another individual, also on condition of anonymity, claimed that he had witnessed the Port Zante incident.
“After the men had finished removing the ship’s ropes from the dolphins, the ship probably began unberthing too soon. The cruise ship’s propellers were engaged and the small boat was caught in the pressure that was given off by the propellers and caused it to capsize,” the eyewitness said.
He also said that after the boat capsized the two individuals vanished under the water.
"After it overturned, the men then disappeared. They were sucked into the pressure that was given off and ended under the ship. Even if they were good swimmers they could not have escaped it. The pressure is stronger than a river!”
SKNVibes also spoke to a taxi/tour operator who conducts businesses in the area and he expressed a similar sentiment.
Both the taxi/tour operator and the eyewitness are of the view that Dowell and Browne misjudged their distance away from the ship before the propellers were engaged.
Both of them noted that it was an unfortunate incident and opined that there is a need for more safety measures be in place to avoid a similar mishap.
This publication learnt that whenever a cruise ship is scheduled to depart Port St. Kitts, SCASPA’s procedure dictates that the linesmen assist in the process by releasing the lines from the mooring points while a pilot goes onboard and takes the vessel out of the harbour and hands it over to the captain.
