Nation: Drugs and Death on the High Seas

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> Retired Armonk, N.Y., Businessman Lester Conrad, 68, and Philadelphia Stockbroker Walter Falconer, 60, set out in calm weather five months ago aboard Conrad's sleek 45-ft. Polymer III from Great Harbor Cay for West Palm Beach, a seven-hour cruise that Conrad had made at least 40 times. The Polymer III has not been seen since. The Coast Guard suspects no foul play, but friends and family of both men note that not only was Conrad an experienced yachtsman, but his boat was equipped with an automatically inflatable lifeboat and S O S radio beacons that would have switched on if the boat had sunk. Smugglers would find the Polymer III especially attractive because of its speed (22 knots), 3,000-mile cruising range and six-ton cargo capacity.

> Thomas Loberg, 63, and Wife Rignor, 62, believe that they and their 47-ft cruiser Rig-n-Tom were nearly lured to disaster near Chub Cay last year by a fake S O S. The radio caller mysteriously requested Rig-n-Tom's position rather than giving his own. A traveling companion, Pat Vaughan, happened to be reading about misleading distress calls in The Island, Peter Benchley's fictional account of modern Bahamian piracy, and urged Loberg to ask for the caller's position. There was no answer. Five minutes later, a high-powered fishing boat appeared on the horizon and began chasing Rig-n-Tom. The intruder veered away, however, when Loberg put his yacht under the lee of a friendly sailboat.

Such close encounters on the high seas have caused many skittish yachtsmen to arm themselves before sailing in Bahamian waters, despite the authorities' insistence that there is no cause for concern. But there is no denying that the drug trade is booming in the small cays. Says Skip Nichols, 33, a Fort Myers marina operator: "Right where Kalia III was found, I have watched drug transactions with my binoculars." There are so many isolated cays—at least 2,000 among the 700 or so islands in the Bahamas archipelago—that the traffic is difficult to police. But some spots have become notorious among yachtsmen, including Norman Cay, just 30 miles from Pipe Cay. Norman Cay is four miles long and has an airstrip and marina. The key was once a happy watering hole for passing sailors, but it has been declared off limits to them by a new owner. Bahamian authorities raided Norman Cay last January, arrested 30 people and seized an undisclosed quantity of cocaine and marijuana.

Many Florida-based yachtsmen accuse Bahamian authorities of being reluctant to act against the smugglers for fear of jeopardizing tourism. This is denied by Bahamian officials, who insist that the islands remain a peaceful playground for yachtsmen. Still, warns Skip Nichols, "If you're not careful, you can get run over by those high-powered drug boats."