Tobago Correspondent
A brief glimmer of hope quickly faded after the body of missing Tobago man Richie Cox was sighted drifting out at sea, but vanished by the time the dive team reached the scene.
Cox went missing on Tuesday evening during a fishing trip with a friend at Black Beach in Black Rock.
His mother, Michellen Cox, said her son always loved going to the sea and had spent most of his time there since he was an infant.
She told Guardian Media yesterday during a search at the beach, “By God’s grace, they must find him today. But we really need some more assistance in divers. Yesterday, they saw the body, but after when they went back down, the body was gone.”
She felt his body could have been retrieved the first time it was spotted. She called for the Coast Guard to do more in the search and retrieval efforts.
Meanwhile, president of the All-Tobago Fisherfolk Association, Curtis Douglas, said a team of 100 volunteers was working to see how best they could retrieve the body. “These are the diving experts that are assisting us to see how best we can find him.”
The search team includes members of the Tobago Emergency Management Agency and the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard, along with family, friends, divers, and fishermen.
Police told Guardian Media on Wednesday that Cox, 21, and his friend went fishing at the beach in an orange kayak.
His friend told police he was concerned about the rough seas, but Cox insisted they still go out.
The men attempted to sail across to Grafton Beach, but they abandoned the vessel after it became filled with water.
They attempted to swim toward some rocks, but the current began to pull them in.
While Cox’s friend eventually reached the rocks, Cox vanished under the strong currents.