Sita Panchu – the only female boat captain in Mahaicony River

Sita is the only female who captains a passenger boat in the Mahaicony River.

She relocated to the Mahaicony Creek 29 years ago when she married.

Sixteen years ago, she began driving speedboats to transport passengers to communities along the river to ‘Branch Road’ and back, to take care of her three children after her husband fell ill.

“Me fine but he lucky me get a strong mind,” the mother of three said as she transported passengers from a wedding in what would be her first of four trips for that afternoon.

On such a busy day, she was prepared to work late into the night to get everyone back to where they can get a bus or car to go home.

Recently, Sita invested in 12 life jackets at a cost of $3,000 each to ensure she complies with safety regulations for river transport.

Sita currently owns three boats and traverses the river as many times as possible per day to provide for her family.