By: Precious Mills
BASSETERRE, St. Kitts (Friday 4th March 2022) — Well-known Cultural Preservationist Winston ‘Zack’ Nisbett has described the late 50-year-old Kenneth ‘Bonzo’ Percival of McKnight as someone who was dedicated, trustworthy and always ready to lend a helping hand. Police are investigating a drowning incident at the Ferry Terminal in Basseterre after a report received close to 4 p.m. on Saturday 26th February, indicating that Percival dived into the sea from the pier at the ferry terminal to retrieve the propeller of a motor vessel that had fallen off. When Percival did not resurface, the St. Kitts and Nevis Coast Guard was called to assist. An Officer from the Coast Guard discovered Percival’s motionless body at the bottom of the sea.
Nisbett, organiser of the annual Basil Henderson Easter Monday Aquatic Sports Meet traditionally held at the Basseterre Ferry Terminal, recalled Percival as a volunteer who took his role very seriously. “Bonzo is someone who you can trust — honest, dedicated and always willing to assist someone regardless of his circumstances. He always there to lend a helping hand. He would come down very early and if the beach needed to be cleaned, he would come and assist me. He always wanted to know what happening next — he was like a watchdog around the gifts, making sure that nobody steals anything. You couldn’t take up a pin while Bonzo is around,” Nisbett said. “Bonzo will be missed by the entire organisation, the aquatic sports committee, and we hope someone would come and step up to the plate and assist like he did. The short stint he had with us, I can tell you, he was a tower of strength.”