Father of 5 drowns after saving daughter, grandson
A family outing on Saturday at Bushy Park Beach, East Bank Essequibo turned tragic when 42-year-old Farook Bacchus perished by drowning after saving his daughter and grandson from being swept away by a “big wave” in the mighty Essequibo River.
Dead: Late Goldsmith Farook Bacchus of La Grange, WBD
The dead man had been a goldsmith who resided at Lot 65 Old Road, La Grange, West Bank Demerara. At his home on Sunday, grieving family members were contemplating their next moves as they considered plans for burial.
Bacchus’s wife of 27 years, Chandai Singh, recalled the horror that unfolded around 16:30h when the father of five lost his life. According to the housewife, her daughter and grandson were sitting on a rock when a heavy wave swept them off. Her spouse was nearby, and responding to their screams, he went to their rescue.
“When meh husband jump for them, he put them on he shoulder and tell them stay up; and then me see the wave carry he out,” she noted.
Housewife Chandai Singh and her grieving family members. To her immediate left is her daughter and grandson whom her husband died saving (Shemuel Fanfair photo)
Singh explained that her son-in-law and another male present on scene jumped into the river to relieve the man of the children. However, by the time they attempted to grab Bacchus, he had already disappeared. She said they did not know that the tide would have risen at such a fast rate.
Bacchus’s body was later fished out of the water, and is presently at the Ezekiel Funeral Home, awaiting a post mortem.
Singh pointed out that three of her five children are attending school, and she expressed great uncertainty over the upcoming school term.
