A 28-year-old gold miner from Kabakaburi Mission, an Arawak community along the Upper Pomeroon River, drowned yesterday after the boat he was operating collided with another vessel in a recently dug canal that encircles the village.
The dead man has been identified by relatives as Rob Jacobus.
According to a relative, Jacobus was operating a 15-horsepower boat through the canal when he approached a blind turn and collided with another 15-horsepower boat.
The operator of the other boat escaped the collision without injury. Jacobus, however, was struck during the impact and went into the water. He did not resurface, the relative explained.
Persons at the scene attempted to locate him, diving into the canal in an effort to find him, but these efforts were unsuccessful. They then tried using hooks attached to lines. According to the relative, this method involves attaching large hooks to long lines that are thrown into the river in an attempt to retrieve a submerged body. After repeated attempts, Jacobus’ body was eventually recovered.
The relative said the canal where the accident occurred was recently dug and is particularly deep, adding to the difficulty of recovering Jacobus after he went under the water.
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