Gadhdhoo Zakariyya’s body washes ashore days after reported missing

An elderly farmer from GDh. Gadhdhoo who went missing last Thursday after venturing out to the neighboring island of Gan on a dinghy boat has been found dead.

Zakariyya Mohamed, 79, Cozy Round, GDh. Gadhdhoo, had set off for neighboring Gan for farming in his dinghy at around 09:30 am on Thursday. He reportedly set off from Gan back to Gadhdhoo at around 11:15 am. He was reported missing to the authorities at around 05:05 pm that day after he failed to return to Gadhdhoo, promoting a search and rescue operation by the police and the Maldives National Defense Force (MNDF).

A police spokesperson told Sun that Zakariyya’s body was found washed ashore in the beach in southern Gan at around 11:45 am on Sunday.

The discovery comes a day after authorities found the dinghy Zakariyya was on from 10 meters underwater in the channel between Gadhdhoo and Gan.

Gan is an uninhabited island a short boat ride from Gadhdhoo, used by the island’s residents for farming.

Zakariyya, who has spent his whole life farming, had gone to Gan as usual on one of his farming trips.

He is survived by his wife have seven children; six daughters and a son.

Making solo trips on vessels that cross seas is prohibited in the Maldives. Such vessels are also required to have safety equipment. However, many people make solo trips on boats for fishing and other purposes.