From Southend Standard UK

A THURROCK man has been killed in a boat crash in the Cayman Islands.

John Turner, 70, who had moved to the idyllic Caribbean location from his home in Grays, was one of three people onboard a boat when it collided with another vessel on Sunday night.

The two boats crashed off the popular North Sound harbour marina, off Grand Cayman Island, at around 10pm.

One of the boats capsized but all three occupants of that vessel were not seriously hurt and were able to swim ashore. In the other boat police found Mr Turner who was pronounced dead at the scene as well as an injured woman who was taken to hospital with series injuries.

Another man who had been onboard was pronounced missing and a joint police air and sea search operation was launched to find him. Tragically, the dead body of the missing boater was found some hours later.

Locally he was named as Emmanuel Brown, aged 42 ,from George Town – the capital of the Cayman Islands- and was a serving police officer and popular local sportsman.

Mr Turner moved to the Cayman Islands around three years ago after retiring. He had owned his own delivery business in the Grays area. He was divorced with grown up children.

Mikhail Campbell, spokesman for the Royal Cayman Islands Police Service said: “Shortly before 10pm on Sunday 11 August, a report was received of a boating incident in the North Sound, off Prospect. It was reported that two vessels collided, causing one of the vessels to capsize. All three occupants of the capsized boat were uninjured and were able to return to shore.

“The second vessel was located shortly afterwards and appeared to have sustained significant damage. Two persons, a man and a woman, were located aboard the vessel. The woman was taken to the Cayman Islands Hospital for treatment. The man was unresponsive and was subsequently pronounced dead.”

Formal identification of the victims is expected to take place within the next 24 hours.

For more on this story go to: https://www.southendstandard.co.uk/news/17835868.tributes-paid-grays-man-died-boat-crash-cayman-islands/