Hunters Search and Rescue team captain Vallence Rambharat says legislators should consider a law that mandates anyone going to the sea to wear a life jacket.
He made the statement following the death of 22-year-old Shomari Fraser, whose partially decomposed body washed ashore on Station Beach, La Brea, yesterday.
Fraser, who lived with friends in Embacadere, San Fernando, disappeared underwater on Friday as he tried to swim from a pirogue to Farallon Island in the Gulf of Paria.
Speaking to Guardian Media, Rambharat said his team joined the search for Fraser over the weekend, scouring areas between San Fernando and Mosquito Creek, South Oropouche. As they were preparing to resume Monday morning, they learned that a fisherman spotted the body in La Brea. He said the team contacted Fraser's friend Rihanna Guiseppi, who went to the beach with others.
Rambharat said they heard Fraser and friends were liming and drinking alcohol on Friday evening before getting on a pirogue and going to Farallon Rock. Some of his friends swam to the isle, and he attempted to follow, but because he could not swim, he struggled to stay afloat. Despite attempts by his friends to rescue him, Fraser eventually went underwater.
Rambharat said there must be a weighty approach to activities involving the sea, as safety must be a priority. He said if there was a law mandating anyone operating a vessel at sea, including fishermen, to wear life jackets and have floatable devices, the coast guard could enforce it.
It would be similar to the police ensuring drivers and vehicle occupants wear seatbelts.
Guiseppi said she learned that Fraser's body washed ashore around 5.30 am and contacted his mother, who lives in central Trinidad. Because Guiseppi lived closer, she and other relatives went to the beach. She identified the body as Fraser's.
Guiseppi recalled that she first met Fraser a year ago near the beach where his body washed ashore, helping him in a difficult time. She and her family took care of him until his death. The 29-year-old mother is urging young people to take life seriously and asked that people on social media stop speculating as it was hurtful to those who care about him.
"I want these children to take life seriously. That is all. You see that one evening of playing, laughing and drinking ended up with a child gone and people on social media speculating. People are saying all kinds of nasty things. They did not know about Shomari. They did not know his life, and people wanted to talk about different things," Guiseppi said.
An autopsy is expected on Fraser's body later this week at the Forensic Science Centre, St James.
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