Four Trinidadians involved — Two dead, two missing
An explosion followed by a fire on an oil tanker — MV Tradewind Sunrise — at mid-afternoon yesterday resulted in tragedy involving four Trinidadians. Two were killed and two missing up to late last night. Dead are Wayne Caldera, 40, of Carenage and Anthony Hamlet, 26, of East Dry River, Laventille. Missing are David Carrillo, 43, of Guaico Tamana, and Lester Charles, 45, of Baird Street, Carenage. According to reports, a massive explosion on the tanker which was anchored half mile east of Reyna Pt, Gaspar Grande Island, ripped a hole on the tanker’s left side at about 3 pm. The blast caused shock waves onshore. Members of the crew, who were employed by a local steel fabricating company, were seen jumping overboard, while thick black smoke billowed from the hole in the ship. Within minutes, several nearby boats rushed to the scene and pulled the workers out of the water, while others tried unsuccessfully to put out the fire. Twenty-two crew members were reported to have survived the incident. Two Coast Guard tugboats and another boat, the MV Scout, were quickly on the scene and were able to bring the fire under control using foam. When checks were made, two workers were found dead inside the hull of the tanker, while two were still missing up to press time. Investigations revealed the crew was doing routine maintenance work when the explosion took place. One of the dead men was welding at the time. The explosion occurred on the left side of the vessel. Melville Shipping is the local agent for the tanker. Coast Guard officials were not able to say what caused the explosion, but confirmed they will continue to monitor and stabilise the situation. Carenage police are also investigating. ‘The blast shook my workplace’ — eyewitness Suzette Johnson Johnson and her colleagues went to the office window and saw black smoke billowing from the Tradewinds Sunrise, a fuel tanker. In an interview with Newsday, Johnson said other vessels were cleared from the immediate vicinity of the tanker, and about ten minutes after the explosion, tugboats were dispatched. "They moved very fast," she said. She also saw pirogues going in the direction of the tanker. Workers from Sundowner Offshore International Ltd, bpTT, Mariners Haven Ltd, Lennox Offshore Services Ltd and other businesses left their work stations to witness what was happening. She said persons in the area were "close knit" and were concerned about the local "workers on the ship doing repairs." Johnson said she heard sirens about half hour after the explosion, but she did not see any emergency vehicles such as ambulances or fire trucks. It was the first time she has seen such an incident in the six months she has been working there. "No one recalled a similar incident happening before," she said.
It was a normal work day for administrative assistant Suzette Johnson yesterday, until she heard an explosion just after 3 pm. The impact of the blast shook her workplace — Sundowner Drilling company — as well as other companies at First Avenue South, Western Main Road, Chaguaramas.
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"Four Trinidadians involved — Two dead, two missing"