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Are you going to a South American
destination that requires travel
by local or regional boats? Then
you’d better think twice or prepare
really well. Along Colombia’s
Pacific coast, as an example,
for an ocean voyage of from several
hours up to more than two days,
you may well be obligated to take
a boat on which there are not
only no creature comforts but
also NO:
• Life vests or life preservers
• Life boats
• Toilets
• Chairs or seats
• Potable water
• interior lighting at night
• meals or food
There is likely to be poor ventilation
and frequently passengers get
seasick with no recourse or sanitation
facilities of any kind. There
might not be any reliable protection
from elements like the broiling
sun, cold, wind-swept rain or
splashing waves, either. You could
also be subjected to noxious fumes
from cargo such as combustibles,
solvents and other chemicals.
We won't even go into animal "products"
from livestock being transported.
Yipes!
The cargo boat on which you’ll
sail will likely have no night
running lights, be poorly maintained,
and have an uneducated, untrained
crew who must work literally around
the clock. The job of two or more
crew members is to stand in nearly
calf-deep water in the cargo hold
of the vessel and manually bail
water leaking in from the multitudinous
cracks and loose seams in the
wooden hull. As usual, the vessel
will be dangerously overloaded.
During vacation and holiday seasons,
it’ll be overloaded with cargo
and overcrowded.
For example, one ship, licensed
to carry eight to ten passengers
routinely crams more than 100
passengers aboard under conditions
resembling those depicted during
the transport of slaves during
the slave trade. Many other passenger-carrying
vessels aren’t licensed for passengers
at all. Registering sea-going
vessels as “cargo boats only”
relieves boat owners of any responsibility
for providing even the barest
of humane conditions. Boats sail
past armada inspection craft –
without being inspected. Captains
and crew just “hide” passengers
inside and out of sight until
they’re well away from the port
(and the armada). Travelers are
simply viewed as an “extra money”
commodity with no consideration
whatsoever as to comfort. Forget
the idea of “pleasure” entirely.
You can pretty much also forget
English-speaking officials, captains
or crew members.
So why, you might ask, do travelers
continue to put up with such archaic,
unsanitary and perilous-at-best
conditions that would be considered
inhumane by any standards in the
world? Simple. It’s because there
are no alternatives. Cargo boat
owners and captains are given
“Carte Blanche” to revel in greed
treating paying customers like
cattle – or worse.
Yes, there are government regulations
that mandate PFDs, life boats,
sanitary facilities, having a
potable water supply, ship to
shore UHF / VHF radios and a satellite
transceiver. Other essential equipment
for ocean-going vessels including
boats that ply the coastal waters
from Panama to Peru include such
items as night running lights
after sunset, which can be as
early as 4:30 pm, a compass, GPS
locator and regular maintenance
certificates in addition to crew
and trip logs.
In the 1300 kilometers from Colombia’s
southern region coastal city of
Tumaco to Jurado, the northernmost
port along Colombia’s Pacific
coast, the sinking of fishing,
cargo and passenger vessels with
the resulting loss of life are
all too common. During the past
several months, a wave of sea-going
vessel disappearances has stunned
and dismayed populations of coastal
communities in Colombia. We all
grieve for these senseless deaths
resulting from ignorance, apathy
and avarice.
So if you’re going to a South
American destination along the
Pacific coast that requires travel
by local or regional boat, you’d
better think twice or prepare
really well. Steps you can take
to help ensure your personal safety
will be discussed in the following
article of this series entitled:
“How to Ensure a Safe, Comfortable
Sea Voyage When Traveling in Latin
America”.
Larry M. Lynch is a writer and
photographer specializing in business,
travel, food and education-related
writing in South America. His
work has appeared in Transitions
Abroad, South American Explorer,
Escape From America, Mexico News
and Brazil magazines in print
and online. He travels researching
articles throughout Latin America
and teaches at a university in
Cali, Colombia. To read more,
express a comment or get original,
exclusive articles and content
for your newsletter, blog or website,
contact the author at: lynchlarrym@gmail.com
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