Overcome with grief, lone surviving diver Christopher Boodram hugged the coffin of his friend and teammate Kazim Ali Jr at his funeral on Saturday.
Family, relatives and colleagues gathered at the compound of LMCS Ltd, Tarouba Road in Marabella to pay their respects to Ali Jr.
The funeral service took place at his home in Gopaul Lands, Marabella, which is a short distance from the company’s location, and streamed live. Ali Jr’s funeral was scheduled to take place on Friday but was deferred because his death certificate did not have a time of death.
Boodram could not contain his emotions. Still in physical pain, he slowly limped across to the coffin, bent over and burst out crying. He was consoled by Ali's father, Kazim Ali Snr – the managing director of LMCS, and other co-workers. He then left the area and went back to his vehicle.
The co-workers, as a sign of tribute, were all dressed in LMCS' uniform with the company's logo.
The relatives of two other men who died in the tragedy – Fyzal Kurban and Rishi Nagassar – were present at the funeral. The family of a third diver who died, Yusuf Henry, who live in Sangre Grande, was not able to attend but reached out to the Ali's before the funeral.
People started gathering from 1 pm for the service which began at 2 pm. The body arrived at LMCS around 2.30 pm and then was taken to the San Fernando Yacht Club, Ali Jr’s favourite place, according to his relatives. He was buried at the Marabella cemetery under Muslim rites.
The funeral was quiet and solemn. As the wind carried whispers, people were still shocked over the loss of 36-year-old Ali Jr, a son, father, husband and friend.
[caption id="attachment_943132" align="alignnone" width="768"] The five divers involved in an underwater accident at Paria Fuel Trading Co Ltd in one of the last photos taken at Pointe-a-Pierre on February 25. From left are, Christopher Boodram, who survived, Kazim Ali, Yusuf Henry, Rishi Nagassar and Fyzal Kurban. -[/caption]
The officiating imam said Ali Jr lived his life bravely and this was reflected in his job and with his daily responsibilities.
“Honour the legacy of Kazim’s (Jr) by being brave. He was a devoted husband and father. There is no doubt he was a very supporting son, especially in the enterprise founded by his father and I am sure he was a dear friend, colleague and neighbour to many, among his other relations that he shared,” he said.
The imam said regardless of religion or fate, everyone made mistakes and needed God for daily guidance, forgiveness and mercy and urged people to develop a spiritual relationship because no one had control over the time they put on earth.
“We have no control over our time on this earth, we have no control over how long we will be in this life but what we have control over is what we do with this time here.
“He (Ali Jr) was the type of person who applied himself in a very industrious manner with respect to whatever would have been the responsibilities under his care and charge, starting with his immediate family.”
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