Aruka river accident: Body of boat captain recovered

The body of a 25-year-old boat captain who went missing after an accident in the Aruka River, Region One (Barima-Waini), has been found.
The body of Terry LaCruz, a father of one, was discovered on Tuesday at around 19:30h in the Aruka River.
The incident occurred on Sunday night and involved two vessels, one operated by LaCruz and the other piloted by his father, Percy Thomas.
Thomas has expressed a sense of relief that his son’s body has been recovered, but noted that the family is now awaiting a Post Mortem Examination (PME) before proceeding with funeral arrangements.

According to Thomas, the accident happened as the family was returning home from church. As they approached their landing, they noticed a boat speeding as it approached them. Thomas explained that they attempted to signal the oncoming vessel by shining a light, but their warnings went unnoticed.
Tragically, the speeding boat crashed directly into theirs. “All we heard was the impact, and we couldn’t see anything else,” Thomas shared in an interview. Only later did they realize the other boat involved in the collision belonged to LaCruz.
As a result of the impact, LaCruz’s small boat disintegrated, and he fell into the water. Fortunately, Thomas and his family sustained no injuries during the collision. They were travelling in a larger 42x5ft boat, which only suffered a dent from the accident. (G9)