And while Monday morning almost took the nation hostage, one Belize City family had a particularly devastating Sunday.
That's because their son and brother 33-year-old Herwin Gotoy lost his life when he disappeared in the treacherous waters of the grace Grace Bank river.
Today Godoy's family as well as the Coast guard returned to that riverbank to effect a desperate search for his body. Cherisse Halsall made the trip to that village to hear firsthand the story of one family's unimaginable heartbreak.
This picturesque riverside day could seem like a picnic, an idyllic jaunt into the countryside, and that's just how it started out when
Herwin and Andre Godoy decided to take a dip in the river but it ended in tragedy when Herwin drowned after being all too suddenly swept away by the current.
Andre Godoy, Brother of the Deceased
"It happened right in front of me and I was trying my best to save him but he didn't make it."
Reporter
"So you saw him go under?"
Andre Godoy, Brother of the Deceased
"Yes, but he was a distance from me, from the location it was and then I saw he was fighting to stay on top of the water, I told my friend I'm watching my brother because he's getting weak and he went down 2 times, so right away I told my friend let's go we need to go and we jumped in the water and we came across, but the more closer we came he was going back because the current is shoving him away so he reached more closer than me to save him, but the third time he went down, he didn't come up."
And with Herwin gone it was left to Andre to break the news to their mother Pauline. We met her this morning taking a very brief break from the search. She showed grace, strength, and determination and told us that she wouldn't leave until she'd found her son.
Pauline Conorquie, Mother of the deceased
"The last thing he went and he said Mom I'm coming back, that's all the last word I remembered from my son, that was like after 1pm he went and he said mom, I am coming back right now. When they called and told me I said no it can't be my son, my son is not a person who would go in the river like that. He like to go bath and I saw him take his water shoes, so I said he was going to swim in nice water."
"When I came out here no its to find out that this is the water that my son went into. I don't even know what happened to it's the devil that made my son go in there."
Reporter
"Ma'am, you expressed to me, you said you need some kind of closure today that you will be out here until they find him."
Pauline Conorquie, Mother of the deceased
"I need to find him, because I need to take him home at my house to West Landivar, so I can bury him. I haven't found him yet. They told me that I may have to wait until next day, but I know my son will come up."
"I try to be strong, everybody says try to be strong I try to cope and pray that I will see my son, my son will come up any minute, he knows that his mom is right here for him, so he will come up any minute. He knows that his mom is right here for him."
The Coast Guard agree that it's only a matter of time but they weren't as optimistic for a same-day recovery.
Chief Tyrone Edwards, Petty Officer
"This is a recovery not a search and rescue because the person has drowned so we are taking our time and going along with the current of the river because it has passed a long while since the person has drown and we believe that the body is drifting down stream. However, some factors to consider is the visibility of the water is very minimum and a lot of broken trees and stuff in the water."
"Right now what we are doing, we submerge way to the bottom and these guys go around feeling their way, close together so that we cover more space and dry to follow the current, because we believe that the person is drifting along with the current."
"We will do our best and we will remain here until two three four in the evening and if not we will come tomorrow morning again, because we can't over exhaust our divers as well, so that's the way we will work it out. With the time span the body will soon float up probably tomorrow after midday and stuff so we'll do a dive in the morning and probably midday we cut off the diving and will have the vessel combing the river banks."
And while in death Herwin Godoy awaits a recovery it seems that in life he was indispensable both at work and at home.
Andre Godoy, Brother of the Deceased
"Before becoming a driver at KHMH he was an attendant so he dealt with patients from, medical ward, surgical ward, and emergency. He worked through the whole curfew. He had a big role in the family, a big role especially for his children them, we will really miss him."
"We've tried to leave it well I don't know, leave it to the good lord, Coast guard are out here playing a big role. I think we will find him today."
As we told you Godoy had been a driver at KHMH for over 12 years.
He leaves behind 5 children, 2 girls, and two boys, and one on the way.
