Captains welcome safety initiative by MARAD
– passengers should only travel with boats with MARAD stickers displayed
DPI, Guyana, Wednesday, April 10, 2019
Passenger boat operators have welcomed the safety initiative by the Maritime Administrative Department (MARAD) that helps passengers identify certified vessels at the various stellings. Travellers can identify the boats by looking for the MARAD decals that will be displayed at the front of the vessels.
The stickers indicate that the boats are licensed and certified by MARAD and are safe for travelling. Captains Stephen Belle and Steve Narine who operate at the Parika Stelling have commended the initiative.
Captain Belle, who is also the President of Bartica Speedboat Owners Association, said: “It will let people know the boats that are ferrying passengers… have operators who are licensed and once you are licensed to carry passengers, it brings some amount of safety in terms of the entire boat operation. So, I think it is a good venture and it will be welcomed by associations throughout the length and breadth of Guyana.”
Captain Narine, who travels the Supenaam to Parika route, said that it will help passengers identify the boats that are safe for travelling. “The passengers will know it’s a licensed boat and it is not the ‘hustle boat’ because after hours, the hustle boat charges an extra fee and passengers blame all the boat operators including the licensed boats and captains as well because they say they travelled on a boat and had to pay X amount of dollars. So, this will help them, it will shine a guiding light for passengers especially those who travel regularly.”
The different coloured decals seen on the boats will identify which route the vessels are travelling. Blue stickers are for the Bartica route, green for Supenaam, purple for Leguan and orange for Demerara.
The initiative was a call made by boat operators to protect themselves and their passengers. “The colours will signify the route and the route is also at the front of the boats. It is basically for passengers to know which are the boats that are certified as competent by MARAD and those that are not, they should not go on because they probably are not safe to travel on” Director of Maritime Safety, Captain John Flores explained.
Passengers are being called upon to only use such boats and to adhere to the safety regulations when traveling in the vessels.
Licensed boat operators can uplift the decals at the various stellings or at the MARAD office for $1,500.
Isaiah Braithwaite.
Images: Jules Gibson.