Stranded SA skipper dies on eve of mercy flight back home

A South African fishing captain stranded in Angola for a month has died just 24 hours before he was due to return home.

Angus Gilbert was best known as the face of commercial fishers I&J's television commercials in the 1980s and '90s.

Viewers may recall his familiar catch phrase: ''I&J deep water hake. We go to great depths for great taste."

Gilbert, 57, was the captain of a fishing vessel bound for Lagos. He suffered a stroke two weeks ago and was admitted to Lobito Bay Regional Hospital.

Gilbert and his crew of six were stranded after their vessel was impounded by port authorities.

His daughter, Olivia Gilbert, said her father began his 40-year career as a deck hand and worked his way up to earn his captaincy.

''He was adamant and determined," she said. "He didn't waste any time in earning his stripes."

Olivia said her father spent most of his career working for I&J as deep-sea trawler skipper.

''He worked for various Cape Town-based companies in the last 15 years but more recently was working in Mozambique and Durban.

''He sailed ships from many ports around the world and his first and last three-week contract to deliver a Nigerian-owned ship became his last voyage as a seafarer," she said.

Gilbert and crew were hired to deliver the Blue Gate fishing trawler to Lagos.

But they ran out of fuel, food and drinking water and had to make an emergency stop in Lobito Bay for supplies.

It was there that the vessel was impounded after the owner failed to pay docking fees.

Gilbert had been due to fly back to Cape Town on Friday morning, but died on Thursday night.

Olivia said not enough had been done to bring her father home sooner. ''Will this boil down to a life in lieu of port fees?" she asked.

''[My father] was a dedicated man who gave his ventures his all. There was always a way, a plan. Failure was never an option."

After news of the crew's desperate situation emerged last week - they were surviving on a limited supply of maize meal and drinking rain water - family and friends rallied support through social media.

Among those who stepped in to help was Rob Lewis, an insurance company executive who bought two airline tickets to Cape Town - one for Gilbert and another for the first mate, Keith Sapto.

Lewis had also organised for the crew to get food.

He said the rest of the crew wanted to remain in Angola until they got paid.

The chief engineer on board the vessel, Ebrahim Mohamed Abdul, explained last weekend that the crew had embarked on their 21-day voyage with limited fuel and provisions.

He said that about a week into their trip they ran low on fuel but the owner refused to give them permission to refuel in Namibia.

Instead, the owner of the vessel instructed the crew to go directly to Lagos, but with fuel running extremely low the Blue Gate continued up the West Coast into Angolan waters instead.

The vessel's owner failed to pay port fees in Lobito and the crew's passports were confiscated by Angolan immigration officials.

It was only after the intervention of the South African embassy in Angola this week that their travel documents were returned and they were allowed to leave.

Sapto's daughter, Keathélia Sapto, said: ''We managed to organise through Facebook for someone to take them food. But they only got one plate and they shared it amongst themselves."

Keith Sapto arrived in Cape Town on Friday and was welcomed home by his family.

His daughter said, ''I'm excited but I have mixed emotions. I feel sad for the captain's family."

laganparsadm@sundaytimes.co.za