MV Barima Tragedy: Total of 69 persons now rescued, 27 dead bodies recovered so far

Following the MV Barima tragedy, another two persons have been rescued while authorities have now recovered 27 bodies.

This was revealed by Prime Minister Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips at a press briefing on Monday evening.

The government had said on Sunday that 67 persons were rescued. At Monday’s briefing, it was noted that the two additional persons were crew members who were not accounted for in the initial 67 tally.

Meanwhile, of the 27 bodies, at least four are children.

The Prime Minister said the search and rescue operation is still unfolding, more so since the location of the sunken MV Barima has been identified and recovery operations are ongoing.

It is believed that about 83 persons are still missing. The government has been able to determine that 179 persons were travelling on this vessel following a review of footage at boarding.

“Our focus is on finding people,” the Prime Minister said, noting that local search efforts are now being supported by a team from French Guiana and a forthcoming team from Trinidad and Tobago.

He also said that maritime professionals have informed him that the sunken vessel may have pockets of air and as susch, there may still be survivors there.

The MV Barima, a passenger and cargo vessel, left Port Georgetown on Saturday afternoon and was heading to Port Kaituma in Region One. Late Saturday night, tragedy struck.

This tragedy has gripped the nation but striking revelations have raised many questions.

Public Works Minister Juan Edghill on Sunday night said officials initially believed they were searching for 116 passengers and 17 crew members, based on the official manifest. But investigations revealed that only 35 of the 67 rescued were listed on the passenger manifest, meaning 32 survivors were never officially recorded as passengers before the vessel left Georgetown.

The vessel’s cargo manifest showed it was carrying 268 tonnes of cargo, below its licensed capacity of 284 tonnes. But now that is also under question. The discovery means authorities no longer know how many people were actually aboard the ferry when it capsized. Additionally, the vessel’s captain and first engineer have been arrested after both tested positive for narcotics.