Joseph Swaby, Managing Director of South Coast Safari
A river ride along the Black River Safari became nerve-wracking for some students after their boat malfunctioned during a tour on Wednesday.
A video showed frightened students and staff being evacuated to another vessel while the person recording frantically screamed at rescuers not to overcrowd the relief boat.
Speaking with Radio Jamaica News, Managing Director of South Coast Safari, Joseph Swaby, said the boat encountered mechanical difficulties shortly after undocking about midday.
“We had a group from George Headley Primary School come and visit the safari to do their yearly excursion. Upon departing the dock, the very boat that we are on here, the Safari Diva, when engaging forward gear, it lost propulsion and shut down the engine. Because the engine was shut down and strong tidal conditions were present, the boat began to drift.
“Immediately, the captain started to deploy safety protocol by trying to deploy the anchor. Unfortunately, due to the silty conditions at the bottom of the river, the anchor was not able to hold sufficiently. Immediately, one of our boats [which was] nearby, rushed to its aid to assist the boat and prevent further drift. The captain of the second boat was able to stabilise both vessels and put them into a position where we could then begin to look about doing an evacuation of all of the students and teachers that were on the vessels,” Mr. Swaby explained.
A preliminary investigation by the company indicates that there were foreign debris entangled in the boat’s propeller displaced in the river by Hurricane Melissa.
Mr. Swaby said there was no harm to any of the individuals on the boat.
The video suggested that some 100 students and teachers were in grave danger. However, the managing director said this is inaccurate.
“There was no signs of injury to anyone. The matter was handled with absolute professionalism. The gentleman who was videoing is actually a local fireman here. So we did actually ask him for assistance,” he noted.
While he admitted that it was a “very unfortunate event…that has never happened to us in this sort of capacity before”, Mr. Swaby acknowledged that this occurrence, where engines sometimes lose propulsion or shut down, is not strange in the boating world.
He also addressed concerns regarding life jackets.
“For persons saying that the boat was not adequately equipped with safety gear, that is severely incorrect; the very seats that you’re sitting on, if you lift up one right now, you’ll see that life jackets are present under all seats.”
Mr. Swaby said the life jackets were not administered since water evacuation was not being considered.
South Coast Safari is the parent company of Black River Safari.