Missing boat returns to Little Cayman

(CNS) UPDATE Friday 10:43am: The RCIPS has now confirmed that the vessel and crew that were reported to be in distress Thursday morning are safe. A search and rescue operation was launched yesterday when the boat could not be located. However, police have now confirmed that it ran aground on the reef near the Hungry Iguana, Little Cayman, around 10:00pm. A Cayman Islands Fire Service vessel with CIFS and RCIPS officers on board attended the location and was met by medical personnel, police said. The two men on board were found to be in good health.

An unofficial source told CNS that after the vessel ran aground on the reef, the men on board were able to refloat it themselves and it was then towed to a dock in the sound.

Yesterday it was reported that a radio operator on Cayman Brac and private citizens from both Sister Islands were supporting a search and rescue operation led by the the RCIPS, involving the police helicopter, the Cayman Islands Coast Guard (CICG) and the Fire Service (CIFS) following the report Thursday morning of a boat in distress southwest of Little Cayman.

A report was received around 9:10am by the Emergency Services which triggered the search. At 4:50pm Thursday it was reported that there had been no sightings of the missing vessel and search efforts were ongoing.

Following the safe return of the vessel, the police said, “The RCIPS and CICG express thanks to our partner agencies and the private citizens who participated in the search, including the radio operator in Cayman Brac who assisted in establishing communications with vessels traversing the area earlier in the day.”

They also thanked residents on Little Cayman who providing overnight accommodation for the crew of the boat.