BREAKING: North west ferry capsized off Guyana's coast, 8 rescued so far

What this source establishes

The earliest domestic bulletin in this corpus, filed at 2:30 AM and updated at 3:25 AM, giving the initial official figures before any death toll existed: 116 passengers and crew aboard, a distress call at 11:01 PM, and eight retrieved alive. It reports that the wreck was located because privately-owned Roraima Airways dispatched an aircraft, obtained the coordinates and relayed them to the GDF. No other source in this corpus reports that the government had no crisis communications response apart from the GDF, with named senior officials declining to answer queries. It gives an initial safety-equipment claim of 250 life jackets, two rigid life craft and six inflatable life craft.

Figures cited in this source

8 rescued alive; 116 passengers and crew aboard

Key claims

• Public Works Minister Juan Edghill said the MV Barima capsized late Saturday night en route to the North West District and eight persons had been retrieved alive as of 3:15 AM.
• Edghill said 116 passengers and crew were aboard and a distress call was received at 11:01 PM.
• A senior official said the vessel was located by an aerial search and rescue team after the crew sent off flares; the area is reportedly extremely dark.
• Privately-owned Roraima Airways dispatched an aircraft, obtained the coordinates and relayed them to the Guyana Defence Force.
• GDF Chief-of-Staff Brigadier Omar Khan confirmed the Air Corps and Coast Guard were deployed, telling Demerara Waves: 'A tough morning. Air and marine teams mobilised.'
• The Public Works Ministry said the MV Barima was fitted with 250 life jackets, two rigid life craft and six inflatable life craft.
• The vessel departed Georgetown for Port Kaituma at 3 PM Saturday.
• Region One (Barima-Waini) Chairman Brentnol Ashley said he first received a call about the incident at about 12:30 Sunday morning.
• Demerara Waves reported that except for the GDF, the government had no crisis communications response, with no designated communications personnel to answer queries.
• Maritime Minister Deodat Indar and MARAD Director-General Stephen Thomas did not provide any information when contacted.

Quotations

• “A tough morning. Air and marine teams mobilised.”— Brigadier Omar Khan, Chief-of-Staff, Guyana Defence Force
• “There is an active search and rescue operation that is taking place and we pray for the safety of all.”— Juan Edghill, Minister of Public Works
• “The medical services are on board one of our Transport (and Harbours Department) steamers, heading to the area to provide a base to start providing medical attention”— Juan Edghill, Minister of Public Works

This page is a research summary prepared for comment and review. It is not the article. Copyright in the original remains with Demerara Waves; the full text is held only in the private research corpus from which this archive was compiled. Follow the link above to read it at the source.