Latest update April 9th, 2025 12:59 AM
Body of soldier recovered two days after boat mishap
Kaieteur News – Two days after the Guyana Defence Force’s Coastguard rank Junior Kenroy Sooklall drowned in the Essequibo River, his body was found yesterday.
Sooklall’s body was discovered sometime around 07:00hrs by fishermen at the mouth of the Essequibo River. According to a report from the GDF, the police were notified and the body has since been positively identified.
Dead, GDF Private, Junior Kenroy Sooklall
Ordinary Rating (OR) Kenroy Sooklall was a passenger on a private vessel on Friday last, when it encountered difficulties and overturned. The soldier is the only fatality from this incident. The GDF stated that the late OR Sooklall resided at Bark Lane, Hopetown Village, West Coast Berbice (WCB).
The army said the investigation to ascertain the circumstances surrounding the incident, continues. Kaieteur News had reported on Saturday that the GDF Base Commander for Fort Island, Staff Sergeant 18990, Everette Tudor of 659 South “B” Field Sophia, Georgetown, and three other persons were intoxicated while they travelled in a privately-owned “unregistered” boat.
It was noted that when questioned by police, the boat captain, Ramesh Beepat, revealed that they were travelling from Fort Island when the 17-foot, wooden boat with a 150 HP Yamaha outboard engine hit a wave and capsized. The mishap occurred at around 16:45hrs on Friday in the vicinity of St. Lawrence.
According to police, a GDF rank, who was passing the area where the boat capsized, heard persons shouting in the river and observed that some passengers were stranded.
As the ranks quickly went to the direction of the persons, they observed four men in the water and two others in a green and black boat a few metres away. A group of soldiers was dispatched immediately and they managed to rescue the stranded persons.
The ranks then took the rescued men to Mangal’s Wharf, after which a report was made to the police. Kaieteur News yesterday made several attempts to contact Sooklall’s relatives. Those efforts, however, have proven to be futile.
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