This evening the body of a 5-year-old boy was retrieved from the Placencia Lagoon while the search continues for his father. The father and child fell into the lagoon on Friday night.
At around 10 on that night 10 persons were traveling in a skiff from Independence Village on their way to Placencia when another boat that was also in the lagoon collided with it. The impact caused 5 people to be flung overboard including LOVE FM Radio Announcer Manuela Ayuso. Her co-worker, technician, William Usher says he was one of the first to see the oncoming boat that did not have on any lights. When he felt the impact he was unaware that the boat captain had been tossed. It was not until he realized that the boat had been left unmanned that he grabbed hold of the wheel and with the help of 4 children who were left in the boat he managed to turn the boat around to help those that had been flung out. He picked up a child first then jumped into the water to save Ayuso.
While 5 people ended up in the water, the 5-year-old child and his father Clifford Adderley were unaccounted for. That was up until this evening when the body of the child was retrieved from the lagoon. Meanwhile the search for Adderley continues.
Police have since impounded a boat and its captain believed to be responsible for the collision. Reports are that boats in the area generally travel without lights at night, which is largely why no one saw the oncoming boat until it was too late.
