The Tribune

By MORGAN ADDERLEY 

Tribune Staff Reporter

madderley@tribunemedia.net 

AN Acklins man is missing at sea following a boating accident off Crooked Island on Monday.

Derek Collie, 38, and Terrance Bullard, 43, were travelling from Samana Cay to Lovely Bay, Acklins, when their boat capsized in rough weather conditions.

Mr Collie is still missing while Mr Bullard was able to swim ten miles to Crooked Island.

Superintendent Shanta Knowles, Royal Bahamas Police Force press liaison officers, confirmed the incident to reporters yesterday.

She said: “Shortly after 7pm (on Monday) police on Crooked Island received information of a boat with two men, that went adrift.

“One of the men swam to shore. All efforts are being made to locate the second man.”

Leonard Dames, the administrator for Crooked Island and Long Cay, said the men ran out of fuel after they encountered bad weather while out to sea.

“Sometime around 10am (Monday), two men left Samana Cay, that’s a cay off Acklins, en route to Lovely Bay, Acklins,” he said.

The men were travelling on a “24ft, single engine, 140 horsepower vessel.”

“As they entered the Lovely Bay, Acklins channel, they encountered rough and bad weather. As a result they attempted to come to Crooked Island.

“On their way to Crooked Island, they ran out of fuel. We experienced the same bad weather (as the rest of) the Bahamas. They were battered by roughly 40ft waves, and the boat flipped over.”

According to Mr Dames, “Samana Cay to Acklins is supposed to take about three hours. They ran out of fuel sometime around 4pm, because they attempted or they called somebody on Crooked Island to get some fuel for them, they were coming in. So sometime between 4 and 7, that’s when they were battling out there. 

“As a result of the boat flipping over, one of the men went under. The other tried to reach out to him but he never surfaced.

“As a result, the surviving (man), he swam ten miles in to Crooked Island.”

According to the island administrator, Mr Bullard, after he reached Crooked Island, had to wander through the bushes to try to find a road.

“In doing all of that, he ended up at one of the resident’s homes… When he was given water, he collapsed.”

Mr Bullard arrived at the resident’s home sometime after 7pm.

He was taken to a clinic for medical care because he was exhausted, the administrator said.

“You have to keep in mind, from 10 (am), they was on the waters. He didn’t show up in Crooked Island until after 7. They were battling (the waves) all day.

“It wasn’t until sometime later when he started to come around that he was able to give a statement to myself along with the police, in terms of the vicinity where he came in.”

Local persons on Crooked Island and Acklins formed four search parties to look for Mr Collie, scouring both land and ocean.

Mr Dames said: “So we got search parties and went to that area or location. And we combed that area until very late last night, into the early hours of the morning. We resumed the search again this morning (Tuesday) at 6.30.

“There are about four search parties. Persons from Acklins came over to assist persons here in Crooked Island. We all combed the vicinity of the location where the gentleman swam to shore. The police have been notified, the defence force has been notified and NEMA has been notified.”

According to Acklins Administrator Marlon Leary, Mr Collie is from Lovely Bay, Acklins, and Mr Bullard is from Delectable Bay, Acklins.

On Monday, a 19-year-old American man in Eleuthera was also reported missing at sea. 

Shortly after 7 am, he was with another man in the area of the Queen’s Bath, south of the Glass Window Bridge in Eleuthera.

A wave struck them and swept them into the sea.

One of the men managed to hold on to a rock and pull himself to safety, but the young American was swept away.

The US Coast Guard and members of the public were assisting with the search.

The incident came after officials warned the public about crossing the bridge, saying on Sunday it was closed because of high sea surges.