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Tonight, A family in Double Head Cabbage wants to know what caused the death of their 24 year old son, brother and father - after the young Coast Guardsman fell out of a boat and died.
Today Jomarie Lanza met with the grieving mother at the KHMH. Here's here story:
The wails and the cries of a grief stricken mother echoed through the morgue area at the KHMH this afternoon, as she was forced to come to terms with every parent's worst nightmare, having to identify the body of her son.
24 year old Kimane Garcia, an active member of the Belize Coast Guard for the past 5 years, was on this 37 foot Edwardonio skiff, returning from a two week rotation at Bacalar Chico yesterday afternoon, when he fell overboard on the rough seas, hitting his head and losing his arm in the boat propeller. The young father of one died before he could be treated by a medical response team in San Pedro.
The Coast Guard has labeled his death as a major marine casualty, but for his family it is far worse than that. His mother told us she found out what had occurred through social media before she could get in touch with the coast guard base.
Tiffany Cadle, Relative of deceased
"Yesterday I believe around 4 o'clock the incident happened, at around 3:30 there about and the commandant had tried to reach the mother but she didn't have her phone at the time, so she was on the bus going home from work and i guess the news hit the social media and everywhere before and it wasn't long until she realized that something happened and it was pertaining to her family and so she got her cell phone and she got the text messages that her son was injured in the boating accident. Of course it's a very devastating loss for us, unexpected, he's young, he has his whole life ahead of him, a vibrant, active young man so it's not going to be easy for the mom or any of the family members."
"We had a meeting already with the commandant of coast guard last night and they have reassured us that an investigation is taking place not only from the police department but also port authority and they themselves will do an internal investigation and so we are just going to wait to receive the results from these investigations and then we will be able to say further what transpired out there that took Kimanes life."
The Coast Guard has handed over the investigation to the police, and now as the family waits for this investigation concludes, his mother says is left to lament over the two weeks that passed since she last spoke with her son.
Reporter:
"Would you be able to say when was the last time you guys had contact with him?"
Judith Flowers, Mother of Deceased
"When he was at sea like two weeks ago he called me and asked me how i was doing and things, usually before he went out he would call me or send me a video and let me know he's leaving or i'm coming home and other things."
Reporter:
"So this was two weeks ago?"
Judith Flowers, Mother of Deceased "Because he would usually spend like three weeks out and then come home."
But tragically for Flowers, her son never made it back home, and the family is now left to grapple with the still unclear circumstances that led to his death. All they know is that one second - he was on this boat - which has no seats - and the next, he was flung into the sea, possibly pulled under its draft. Many unknowns and the family can only hope to get some closure from an investigation they hope is conclusive.
As noted in the report, Kimane Garcia Flowers was the father of one child, a son.
