Three drown in Orange Walk, one in Cayo
Four people drowned over the weekend in two separate incidents, one in Orange Walk and the other in Cayo.
Robert Mariano, O.C., Orange Walk Police
“It is very, very disturbing because every life is very important to us. The police is doing everything that the police could do in order to save lives and when we hear about a tragedy such as this…you know one life is too much.”
Jacqueline Godwin, Reporting
A Sunday evening ride on the Honey Camp lagoon in the Orange Walk District ended in tragedy after three of the occupants on the boat drowned. Since the accident police have since recovered the bodies of twenty-two year old Lisbeth Cardinez and forty-three year old Anaceli Perez however the search continues for Perez’s husband Efrain Perez. Reports are that the Perez’s family was celebrating the birthday of one of their sons when the mother and father and friends decided to take a ride in Perez’s aluminium skiff. There are conflicting reports about what transpired but preliminary investigations suggest that the small vessel quickly filled with water that caused it to sink.
Robert Mariano
“According to the information Mr. Perez suddenly stopped the boat and water went into the boat and the boat submerged. At that time the different people held on to the boat while some held on to the gas tank and it was at that stage whiles everybody was fighting for their lives when three of them went down.”
According to one of the survivors, forty-five year old Margarita Medina, twenty year old Leoni Sanchez and Cardinez managed stay afloat by hanging onto a single plastic gasoline container. According to Medina none of them could swim and eventually Cardinez slipped off and drowned. The only person who reportedly knew how to swim was Mr. Perez. It is not known what could have happened that caused him to go under and not resurface. There were no life preservers aboard the vessel. Today the police appealed to the public to be very careful whenever on the road or on the sea.
Robert Mariano
“We just need to be more responsible and to be more careful. The thing is if we go out to have a boat ride let’s try to have as much person on board who know how to swim and to have life vests on board these boasts. And if you have children along with you, these children must be supervised.”
The search continues for Efrain Perez a well known furniture maker from Orange Walk Town.
In late news, police report that they recovered the body of Efrain Perez this evening.
Meanwhile in the west, the Sierra family is mourning the loss of their child, seven year old Jason. The young boy was swimming in the Mopan River at Bullet Tree Falls in the Cayo District when he suddenly went under. According to the family, Sierra was along with another seven year old boy and a fourteen year old girl swimming when he fell into what is believed to be a deep hole and was pulled under. Reports are that young Sierra desperately tried to hold onto the other two children’s hands but slipped from their grasp as he was pulled by the strong current. Sierra’s body was recovered a half hour later a few yards away from the where the child went under. Jason Sierra is the son of Police Corporal Jose Sierra who is presently attached to the Belmopan police station.
