The fishermen who died in a boating accident near Breezy Point loved the sea — and their families

Yahoo

01-03-2025

For six friends aboard a 30-foot fishing boat that capsized near Breezy Point off the coast of Queens during its first trip, what was a relaxing and rejuvenating pastime ended up costing four of the men their lives while the surviving two are haunted by the harrowing experience.
The boat, a Grady-White owned by two of the men, suddenly overturned in Ambrose Channel Feb. 23 after beginning to take on water, casting the men into the channel. One of the friends still has not been found.
Cecilio Javier Adames, 50, nicknamed 'Captain' for his history of boating excursions, was among those killed,
'He enjoyed nature. He enjoyed fishing a lot. He enjoyed being on the boat, which was how he died,' Brian Adames, the victim's son, told the Daily News.
Adames was originally from Sabana Iglesia, Dominican Republic, and lived in Howard Beach, where he shared the boat with one of the men who survived, said his son.
'He would always go on a boat. He had a couple boats back in the day, but recently he's been sharing a boat with his friend,' said Brian Adames, 25, who added that the vessel had just been brought up from in Florida.
'If I'm not mistaken that day was the first day they tried the boat,' he said. 'They were just trying the boat out apparently.'
Adames, an Uber driver, and Francis Marmolejos, of Cypress Hills, who co-owned a deli, were among the three whose bodies were recovered. Vernon Glasford, a construction worker living in the Bronx neighborhood of University Heights, has not been located but is presumed dead. Surviving the incident were Enrique Diaz, who owns an auto shop in East New York and Sewchand Maniram, of South Richmond Hill.
On the day of the accident, the boat departed from a dock on Cross Bay Blvd. near 162nd Ave. in Howard Beach, and began its trip on Shellbank Basin, a narrow inlet leading to Jamaica Bay. The vessel was on its way back to land when it began to take on water near Breezy Point
A 911 call was placed at 12:04, said a spokesman from the U.S. Coast Guard. As the men waited for help to arrive, they tried desperately to remove the water that was pouring into the vessel.
One of the survivors, Sewchand Maniram, 62, had taken over captaining the boat and told family about the horror that began to unfold.
'One of the guys was feeling seasick, so my grandfather took over driving to go back,' said Maniram's nephew, Sachin Latchman, 18. 'There were a lot of waves, and it seemed unnatural to my grandfather because he owned a boat, too.'
The men looked back and noticed the engine was already under water.
'That's when it flipped,' said the nephew. 'It happened all of a sudden. My grandfather climbed onto the bottom of the boat.'
As the chaos grew, the friends desperately tried to save each other in the frigid waters off the coast of Queens.
'One minute everything was fine, and then next minute it was chaos,' Asha Maniram, 42, said her father told her. 'He said they ended up in the water, and they were trying to help each other out.'
The rescue ended up taking over two hours, during which time four of the men were lost.
A Coast Guard spokesman said the agency immediately dispatched two boats and a helicopter to respond to the area around Breezy Pointa s soon as the call came They were soon joined by the NYPD and FDNY.
The Coast Guard continued to track the call with help from New York City and Monmouth County 911 and were able to get a possible location around 2 p.m. near the Ambrose Channel, a busy shipping area between Queens and Staten Island.
'At approximately 2:15 pm, Coast Guard crews arrived at the location of the distressed vessel and commenced rescue efforts,' the Coast Guard spokesman said.
The co-owner of the craft, Enrique Diaz, 55, was airlifted to safety and treated in the surgical intensive care unit at Staten Island University Hospital North.
Diaz's son, Jonathan Diaz, 33, said his father was on the rescue helicopter with Adames. He believed the two friends, both from the Dominican Republic, had met when they were taxi drivers years ago.
'It was too long,' Jonathan Diaz said of the time it took for rescue crews to find the boat, recalling what his father told him. '[The victims] were trying to take water out with buckets, but it was just sinking too fast.'
'I'm thankful,' said Jonathan Diaz of his father's survival. 'I'm happy, but at the end of the day it's a lot of people [who died]. It's unfortunate for the other families. They all went through the same situation.'
Adames' devastated son is now left only with memories of his father, who had just become a grandfather.
'My son is two months. He was crazy about my son. He was crazy about him, since the day he was born, since the day he was in the stomach, actually…He was crazy about him. I have a picture of him kissing him,' said Brian Adames.
'Above all my dad was a very humble person. And aside from being humble, he was very kind-hearted. Very down to earth, and tough at the same time, whenever he had to be. Strong person.'
'My heart is aching, and it's just something that's so unbelievable. I just, I think it's so crazy, the fact that he's gone. It's crazy to me. But I'm accepting it. I'm slowly accepting it.'
Another of the fishermen who died was 37-year-old Francis Marmolejos, a father of three.
'Fishing was his hobby. I guess he couldn't wait for summer,' said cousin Edward Leonardo. 'Life is crazy sometimes.'
'He was an amazing father. He was like a father to me,' said a relative who gave her name as Jasmin 'He is always going to be remembered in our hearts. He was a loving man. He was amazing.'
Marmolejos grew up in La Vega, Dominican Republic and was co-owner of a deli in Ridgewood for 10 years, said family. On Wednesday, there was a memorial to him outside the Best Deli Grocery on Wyckoff Ave. near Halsey St. with votive candles, beer bottles and a newspaper story about the tragic mishap.
After searching until 6 p.m. Monday, the Coast Guard suspended the search for Vernon Glasford, 51, who is believed to be dead.
'The decision to suspend a search is always difficult,' said Capt. Jonathan Andrechik, the Coast Guard Sector New York commander. 'Though our active search has ended, our support and sympathy remain with all those impacted by this tragic incident.'
Glasford's sister, who has lived in the same building as her brother in University Heights, said the hardworking construction worker originally from St. Kitts and Nevis was a father of two.
'He went fishing all the time. He did it for fun. He'd often give the fish away, that's how generous he was,' said Jenel Bobb.
'I remember his kindness,' she said 'He was loving and dependable.'