Surviving members of the beloved Bahamian group Da Pond Band are speaking out after five of their bandmates were killed in a small plane crash that claimed all 10 lives aboard.
The Cessna 402 departed Lynden Pindling International Airport in Nassau shortly after 1 p.m. Friday, bound for San Andros Airport, when it "encountered difficulties" and went down in dense brush in North Andros, according to the Bahamian Aircraft Accident Investigation Authority. The band and a popular local DJ were headed to Andros Island to perform for the country's 53rd Independence Day celebrations.
Da Pond Band identified the members lost as Giovanni McKenzie, Mateo Winder, Rashad Storr, Tonique Gilot, and Travis Johnson. DJ Melvin "DJ Fresh" Henfield was also among the victims.
Vocalist Shenia Roberts, who had already arrived on Andros and was waiting for the rest of the group, told CBS News the five were people she spoke with daily. "They were the people that I talked to in the morning, in the night," she said.
Bahamian Prime Minister Philip Brave Davis addressed the nation directly. "We gather beneath a cloud of great sorrow," he said, adding that he and his wife were "praying for the families who are now facing unbearable grief." The Bahamas Musicians and Entertainers Union said the band's artistry "touched so many lives and helped to enrich the cultural fabric of The Bahamas."
Singer Lamar Polhamus, reflecting on the loss in a Facebook post, asked the public for "space, time, support, and prayers" as the band and the wider Bahamian music community begin to grieve and heal.
