Cruising couple attacked, one killed, on Guatamala’s Rio Dulce

Dan and Nancy Dryden spent the last six months working on their sailboat Sunday’s Child preparing for an extended cruise. Horribly, four armed men boarded the boat one recent Saturday evening turning the dream into a nightmare.

The men boarded carrying machete’s and demanded money from the couple. Either not having money on board or being unwilling to part with it, Dan Dryden began to fight. Unfortunately, the ice pick he wielded was taken and used against him.

Despite her trauma Nancy is recovering in a local hospital having successfully called for help on the ships radio after the attack. Her three children have joined her in Guatamala to care for her during her recovery and to see to the cremation of their father.

In a bazaar twist, two more individuals lost their lives on the evening of the 14th. These were not sailors, but two of the four men believed to have taken part in the attack on the Drydens. Two men had already been arrested by the local police, but the rest of the community appears to have taken care of those the police had not yet found.

The people of the Rio Dulce river rely on the cruising community who visit its sheltered waters during hurricane season. Clearly, a message was sent that an attack on the sailboats will not be tolerated by the locals.


A Word on Pirates: The men that carried out this attack were cowardly thugs. They are no different from the cowards who carry out muggings or car jackings by land. The only difference is that they have a means to reach boaters thereby earning them the status of Pirate.

These kinds of attacks are incredibly rare and the odds of ever being victimized are far less on the water then they ever will be on land. Walking in downtown Houston is a far riskier proposition than sailing when it comes to the likelihood of meeting this type of bad element.