MV Barima Tragedy: 53 bodies now recovered; total number of rescued persons revised to 76

A total of 53 bodies have been recovered following the MV Barima Tragedy.

This update was provided by Prime Minister Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips at a press conference on Tuesday afternoon.

He said 26 of those bodies have been positively identified.

The bodies are being stored at the Suddie Hospital on the Essequibo Coast before they are released to the families for burial or cremation. PM Phillips said four refrigerated containers have been taken to the hospital to ensure that there is enough storage for the bodies being recovered.

Search, rescue and recovery operations are still ongoing.

Another body has been identified inside the sunken vessel, but the PM said divers have not yet been able to recover that body. He also believes that there may be other bodies inside the vessel. Additional foreign divers are expected in Guyana and will assist with searching the sunken MV Barima.

Meanwhile, the number of rescued persons now stands at 76.

It was explained that the adjustment in the number of persons rescued mainly resulted from information being received from several different sources. As that information came in, it was carefully reviewed and verified to eliminate any duplication and provide a more accurate account of the number of persons rescued.

The search area has also been expanded to 2,100 square kilometres.

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. Once this information came to light, the list of passengers was released to the public.

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 too.

Additionally, the vessel’s captain and first engineer have been arrested after both tested positive for narcotics. This information was released to the public soon after authorities found out.

The government has said that an investigation will be launched to determine what really caused the ferry to capsize. President Dr Irfaan Ali has promised a full and thorough investigation into the entire tragedy.