Albert P. Belle Isle wrote in
:

Thread on stranded boat rescue progress (or deliberate lack thereof):

http://www.renegade-cruisers.org/bb/...pic.php?t=1656

The owner/victim's "after action report:"

http://www.renegade-cruisers.org/bb/...656&postdays=0
&pos
torder=asc&start=90&sid=0fbbb9b92f80c705b6c8e67c53 289baf

Cruising in Belize, anyone?

Al
s/v Persephone

I just got back from spending most of this cruising season in Belize,
which is where I've spent the majority of the past 3 seasons. I'm also
a network controller for the NW Caribbean cruiser's net which meets at
1400 UTC on 8188.0 Mhz USB on a daily basis. I never heard anything
about this, and based upon an e-mail inquiry to some of the other
controllers, they didn't either. The only potnetial reference that we
have to this is a mention by S/V Conch Quest on June 22 that stated that
"2 boats were wrecked on the reef near Xcalak." I know of at least 5
boats that passed between San Pedro, Belize (Ambergris Cay) and Xcalak
during that period and none of them reported anyone requesting any
assistance via the VHF or SSB.

I will also state that during my 3 years of cruising in Belize that I
have had very few fishermen or otherwise approach that boat. I
certainly can't make the same statement for other Caribbean islands. I
have never been asked for "whisky, pot, cocaine, or cigarettes." At
most I've been asked if I wanted to buy fish. Belizians are some of the
most respectful people that I've met anywhere in all of the Caribbean.

I also wonder who the Belizian's were that denied the Mexican's from
assisting Choupique off of the reef. Belize has no one patrolling their
reefs or borders. There are only customs and immigration staff at San
Pedro and they don't have any boats. The area that he descibes is
rather remote, being less than a mile from the Mexican border and about
15 miles from San Pedro. I can't imagine who would be there to keep the
Mexican's from assisting and to monitor the situation without offering
to provide assitance.

The bottom line is that something is wrong with this report. Perhaps
this happened, but I suspect that this is far from the full and correct
story.

-- Geoff