St Lucia Fishers receive free tracking devices for their Vessel
Saint Lucian fishermen have begun receiving free tracking devices for their boats to aid in locating distressed vessels at sea.
The Fisheries Minister, Alfred Prospere, informed the House of Representatives last week that 300 of these “non-mandatory” devices were being distributed.
The units, according to Prospere, who is also responsible for Agriculture, Food Security, and Rural Development, will improve maritime safety and save lives.
Moreover, he urged the fishermen to accept the trackers.
Kaygianna Toussaint-Charlery, the operations manager of the Goodwill Fishermen’s Cooperative, stated that she has supported the tracking devices initiative since its inception.
Toussaint-Charlery recalled, “We have lived through the experience of so many fishermen going missing at sea.”
She also stated that the tracking devices would help rescuers pinpoint the exact location of a vessel in distress.
Tuesday saw the installation of ten devices on vessels in the Vieux Fort port and seven at the Savannes Bay landing site.
However, Toussaint-Charlery explained that the fishermen were initially skeptical.
She revealed that they were concerned about being “monitored” by police.
However, she stated that was not the objective of the devices.
Toussaint-Charlery believes that the devices should become mandatory at some point as part of the registration process for fishing vessels, despite the fact that they are not currently required.
