In the quiet still hours of the evening on May 10, 1980, a young nation faced its most crucial hour. Two Cuban MiGs were dispatched by Cuba's competent authority. Their ultimate destination Cay Santo Domingo a small cay in the southern hemisphere of the Bahamas. Their intended target: HMBS Flamingo, a one-hundred-and-four-foot Bahamian patrol vessel with two Cuban fishing vessels, Ferrocemento 54 and Ferrocemento 165, in tow.
The remaining hours in the afternoon will unfold a tyranny of unsettling events resulting in the tragic loss of life and property for the Bahamas. The crises plunged the region into a geopolitical crisis and set in motion a cascading set of circumstances that will affect the young nation for the rest of its existence.
“Final Sunset” is the riveting account of the fatal sinking of HMBS Flamingo by Cuban MIGs on May 10, 1980. It recounts the harrowing tale of heroism and survivorship. The gritty and unrelenting human will to make it home after their routine day took a most unfortunate turn on one of the darkest moments in Bahamian history.
