Lone fisherman dies out at sea

National, Normal

CHRISTMAS and New Year festive season came with mixed emotions for a family in Tubuserea, Central province.
The family is mourning the death of their father who had gone on a fishing trip on Christmas Eve and did not return home.
Hekoi Kone, father of eight and a skilled fisherman, was alone on his boat on the night of Dec 24 when he disappeared.
According to relatives, Hekoi’s body was found washed ashore at nearby Barakau Village on Monday morning, three days after his sudden disappearance at sea.
A search party found his boat abandoned at Motupore Island.
According to one of the relatives, everything on the boat was exactly the same as when he left the village.
It was obvious from the appearance of the boat that he did not even start what he was out for when he met his fate. “We don’t know what happened to him.
“It seems he left so sudden and he has not even touched his fishing gears,” he said.
The relative added that they believed he might have suffered a stroke and fell into the sea.
The body is now at the  Port Moresby General Hospital Morgue mhere a post-mortem will be carried out before releasing it back to the relatives for burial.