The aftermath of the Simshar tragedy continued to make the headlines last week, with the main developments being a magisterial inquiry into the sinking of the fishing boat and the death of the three crew members, and the Armed Forces of Malta's detailed explanation and defence of its search. But 11-year-old Theo Bugeja remains missing at sea, presumed dead.

Last Thursday, lawyer Anne Fenech was also appointed by Transport Minister Austin Gatt to carry out a preliminary investigation into the case and make any recommendations she deems necessary.

Meanwhile, the Armed Forces of Malta rebutted fishermen's criticism over how the search was conducted, while continuing its operation despite strong northwesterly winds last Wednesday which halted the fishermen's own search for the boy.

Azzopardi Fisheries leased a plane for the Bugeja family to look for Theo, conducting separate aerial searches from the AFM, but to no avail. The searches continued yesterday and another is planned for today.

Fingers continued to be pointed during the course of the week. The Fisheries Co-operative criticised the AFM for conducting the search from the air, leaving out patrol boats, saying this was the fourth time fishermen had found missing vessels, rather than the army. Fishermen also reiterated that they were instructed not to conduct their own searches by the AFM.

Reacting to the criticism, the AFM gave a detailed account of its efforts to locate the fishing boat and continued to deny claims it had restrained searches by the fishing vessels, adding that, on the contrary, it had supplied them with detailed marine information.

It said it was only notified by a relative of one the crew members that the Simshar was missing on July 12 at 7.20 p.m. - two days after it sunk - and that, consequently, no searches could have been conducted before that. On receiving the information, the AFM said its actions were immediate and it left no stone unturned to locate the overdue vessel and its survivors.

In its statement, it said that with more information emerging on the case from the sole survivor, Simon Bugeja, it felt it was inappropriate to level accusations based on the interpretation of information not available at the time of the initial search.

The fact that the Simshar's Vessel Monitoring System and satellite phone connection signals were terminated abruptly on that Thursday evening just over two weeks ago and had not been picked up by the Fisheries Department, resulting in a delay in the rescue operations, was another bone of contention throughout the week.

It was brought up by the former secretary of the Fisheries Cooperative, while its president Raymond Bugeja said fishermen were angry that nobody noticed that the Simshar had disappeared off the radar before the boat was reported overdue on July 12.

The VMS transmits its position to both the Fisheries Department and the AFM every two hours, Mr Bugeja explained, arguing that the alarm should have been raised when the boat stopped transmitting a signal.

But Anthony Gruppetta, director general of Veterinary Regulations and Fisheries Conservation and Control, argued that the VMS stops transmitting if the engine is switched off.

The Labour Party also entered the fray when its fisheries spokesman, Joe Sammut, said that while the Simshar tragedy should not be politicised, there clearly were shortcomings the authorities should have prevented.

He said the AFM lacked sufficient resources to conduct the search operation and serious questions arose about the role of the Fisheries Department in relation to the VMS.

Last Monday, more light was shed on what actually could have happened out at sea, when the fishing boat Grecale, which had rescued Mr Bugeja on July 18, the sole survivor of the Simshar, returned to Malta.

The raft Mr Bugeja fashioned in the water from a net, containing empty bottles, was seen on board the Grecale.

Its captain Mark Bugeja said Mr Bugeja had told him the boat had caught fire - as opposed to previous information that it had exploded - and took some hours to sink, during which time he managed to put together the makeshift raft on which the four men and his son were able to hang on and rest two at a time.

It was also learnt that, on being rescued, the first words of Mr Bugeja, who celebrated his 35th birthday on Friday, were that the others had died and that Theo passed away on July 17, slipping from his tired arms the next morning, a few hours before the rescue.

Last week, Marsaxlokk was still in shock, particularly on the day of the open-air market, Sunday, where the Bugeja fish stalls were conspicuous by their absence.

Its mayor Stephen Caruana said it would take Marsaxlokk residents a while to get over the tragedy, praising the fishermen - about 60 crew in 20 fishing boats - who joined the search for their missing colleagues.

Emotional interviews at Marsaxlokk with Mr Bugeja's uncle Joe Gafa' and Joe Incorvaja, a former colleague, highlighted the Bugeja family's strong bond with the sea.

Last Sunday, Stephania Carabott, the 28-year-old widow of Noel Carabott, the first corpse to be found, spoke to The Times about her husband's 'premonition' before his fateful fishing trip, which dates back to July 7, and described him as a "hero" for using his clothes to cover Theo, putting the boy's welfare before his own.

She thanked the AFM for all they did and said she was waiting to speak to Mr Bugeja, still recovering in hospital, to get to the bottom of the story. Meanwhile, Mr Bugeja was transferred to the hospital's Burns Unit on Tuesday.

On Monday, an autopsy concluded that Abdulrahman Abdala Gedi, the Somali fisherman who formed part of the crew, died as a result drowning, as well as burns.

On Friday, a fund in aid of the Simshar victims' families was launched by the Resources Ministry and the Fisheries Cooperative, over and above assistance the government will give to the families.

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