67 rescued, 66 missing after 87-year-old ferry MV Barima capsizes off Guyana

The sinking

The MV Barima, a ferry built in 1939, departed Georgetown at 3:15 p.m. on Saturday with 116 passengers and 17 crew members bound for Port Kaituma in the Essequibo region. The vessel was sailing along the North Atlantic coast when it capsized near the Pomeroon River. A distress call was received at 11:01 p.m. local time, triggering a search and rescue operation involving the Guyana Defence Force Coast Guard, private aircraft, fishing vessels and civilian volunteers.

Rescue efforts

By Sunday morning, Prime Minister Mark Phillips reported that 53 people had been rescued. Later in the day, Public Works Minister Juan Edghill confirmed that 67 survivors had been brought ashore, including 41 men, 11 women and 15 children. The other 66 people aboard remain missing. Phillips said the search area had been expanded from 400 sq km to 1,070 sq km, with additional aircraft and vessels deployed alongside local fisherfolk. Emergency family assistance centres have been set up to support relatives.

Search and Rescue Advancing. 67 persons, inclusive of 15 children rescued so far.

What caused the capsizing

Edghill said preliminary investigations indicate the vessel was operating within its legal limits. It was certified to carry 397 passengers and 284 tonnes of cargo, and its manifest showed 268 tonnes of cargo. The ship was equipped with 250 life jackets, two lifeboats and six inflatable rafts. Edghill attributed the accident to a large wave, not a mechanical failure or overloading.

There was no engine problem or any mechanical problem. It had nothing to do with overload. It had to do with the tide.

Survivor accounts

Adam Matabheek, travelling with his wife, brother, sister-in-law and three young nieces and nephews, said he noticed the vessel leaning several hours before it capsized but dismissed it as rough water. He ended up in the water and grabbed a lifejacket. His wife Carlita, who cannot swim, became trapped inside the overturned vessel before a lifejacket fell within her reach. Wayne Kitson, an 18-year-old survivor, told local outlet Kiskadee Watch that he swam from 10 p.m. to 4 a.m. before being rescued and fears his wife and daughter died.

I started to pray.

The vessel and the region

The MV Barima was built in 1939, according to shipping website VesselFinder, making it 87 years old. Its destination, Port Kaituma, lies in the oil-rich Essequibo region, a 160,000 sq km area at the centre of a territorial dispute with Venezuela. Guyana, an English-speaking nation of about one million people, has described the sinking as one of its worst maritime disasters.