The Tribune

By EARYEL BOWLEG

ebowleg@tribunemedia.net

Glen Brandt loved The Bahamas. Every summer the 48-year-old American would stock up his trawler Genesis at his home port in Florida and head south for New Providence.

For five or six years he made his summer home the Nassau Harbour Club marina, taking his 44-foot boat out on fishing trips, enjoying the company of other yachtsmen and locals in the nearby bars and restaurants.

In 2010 some of his family flew over from Florida to join him and share in the chilled out lifestyle Nassau had to offer. It was to be the last time they would all be together.

When his son Kevin, a nephew and Glen’s girlfriend were due to fly back to the States for work, they helped Glen prepare the Genesis for its own return trip back to the States.

“We finished getting the boat ready like every time it left. Thought nothing different. We did it numerous times and never had any issues. I never realised that was the last time I would see my dad,” said Kevin.

The weather forecast wasn’t great but Glen was an experienced sailor and had made the journey a number of times so was confident in his abilities to safely navigate the passage back to Florida.

We know the route he planned to take. Across the ocean to Marathon in the Florida cays where he planned to refuel at Pancho’s marina and fuel dock. From there he would sail on to Bradenton on the Manatee River south of Tampa.

Ten years on the questions of what happened to their father still haunt Glen’s children.

“I guess nobody expects this to happen, we all just expected him to come home and life would be normal but it flipped our lives upside down,” Glen’s daughter  Lauren told The Tribune.

When Glen and the Genesis failed to arrive at Bradenton as planned his family immediately contacted the US Coastguard.

“The Coastguard did calls out to other vessels to see if they’d seen anything and searches along the route he’d have taken,” said Lauren

“I even went down to cays to be a little bit closer to where he could have been and to keep in touch with the Coastguard.”

As the days ticked by all the family could do was pray and hope that Glen would be found.

In desperation the family even hired a private investigator who came to The Bahamas to see if there was anything which could help point to what had happened. 

Glen’s son Kevin came down with his cousin, interviewing anyone they could find who might know something, posting flyers with Glen’s photograph asking for people to get in touch if they could help.

At one point they hired a plane and carried out their own aerial searches, particularly in the Bimini area where it was thought Glen may at some point have been.

It was all in vain. No tips, no clues, no sign of Glen or the Genesis.

“We were left grieving with no answers to what had happened,” said Lauren.

Their minds were racing with possibilities

Had there been some medical emergency onboard which left Glen unable to handle the boat?

“Had somebody boarded the boat and stolen it? You know those were kinda of scenarios we would have come up with.” said Lauren.

“We kinda ruled out that he had fled for some reason. He had his own business here, a house, a new grandson.

“I went to The Bahamas with my cousin checking any chance we had, just hoping for a simpler solution. There weren’t high expectations but we had to explore every option available. We posted fliers in the area but no response.”

The days of not knowing turned in weeks, then months and years - leaving only memories and mystery.

Today Glen has officially been declared dead by for Lauren and Kevin the questions of what happened will never go away - and there is always that lingering hope that somehow a new piece of information could emerge.

“He had his family. I have a brother. I also have a son who doesn’t have his grandpa and it’s hard for him to comprehend, he doesn’t understand,” said Lauren.

Glen’s son Kevin told The Tribune: “You know this was 10 years ago and obviously people do forget but it would be nice if somebody knew something and knew that there was an incentive to report something they may have heard, or you know, seen the boat.

“I’m not sure what happened. I know the weather was bad at the time so I think there was an accident at sea. That’s the most likely outcome. It was hard processing the loss. I never experienced this situation before. There isn’t a closure like you have most of the time.

“It’s something you think about every day and it never gets easy.”