Totoaba - THE ROAD TO ENSENADA - April 2006 - Cont'd.
By Katherine Hammontré
The men with their backs to the camera are receiving the gurney with the Totoaba inside. What makes it more awkward is the movement of the boat from the waves and still maintaining a hold on the fish, without falling into the water. The men on the right are taking the fish to the truck.
This process had to be done at least 12 times before the truck would be ready to drive to Ensenada, which meant we would be leaving late and arriving after dark.
Federal officials had to inspect the fish on the boat and the ones put in the truck and sign off to release the truck to leave. They also got on board and inspected the ice holding tank to make sure nothing illegal went on as every Totoaba had to be accounted for. The school has permission to take the Totoabas that didn't survive back to the lab where they make a fish meal for other Totoabas.
Sea water had to be pumped into the tanks in the truck. It would have been much simpler to use a crane to move the entire tank off the boat and onto the truck, however, in Mexico, we make do with what we have available. The crew from the José Andrés worked very hard getting the fish in and out of the tanks and with great care and efficiency.
We had a small reception of the San Felipe locals, interested in what was going on and also to get a peek at the fish that is illegal to fish. The folks from The Net along with Tony Reyes, Sr. and Tony Reyes III (Tony's grandson) also waited on the pier and watched with anticipation for the Totoabas to be transferred.
The photo below, left, shows Shirley Thompson, Juan Tapia, and Desiree' Blair, my daughter, waiting and Tony with his grandson on the right. Tony has donated his boat many times for this worthy cause.
Below, they make adjustments to the generator and make sure the pump to the tanks is working. The Totoaba will be given oxygen to make sure they live through the trip.
The truck is ready to go and we are about to be on our way to Ensenada. As you can see, the truck is a big one and it's an old truck, so we did have some mechanical problems. The project is often times underfunded and the cost of a new truck is prohibitive. I'm pictured on the left with Ramon Davis, the ship's engineer.
