MV Barima Tragedy: 65 bodies now recovered, families identify 44 persons

What this source establishes

News Room Guyana's Wednesday afternoon official update takes the recovered count to 65 with 44 identified and 23 released to families, while the rescued figure stays at 76, the last figure recorded for survivors in this corpus. It sets out the salvage strategy of repositioning the wreck into shallower water before an eventual lift, with French, Brazilian and Trinidadian support. No other source in this corpus records that a third individual, the person who oversaw the loading of the boat, turned himself in for questioning on Wednesday.

Figures cited in this source

65 bodies recovered, 44 positively identified, 23 released to families; 76 rescued

Key claims

• Prime Minister Mark Phillips said 65 bodies had been recovered and families positively identified 44 of those persons.
• 23 of the identified bodies have already been released to their families.
• The number of rescued passengers and crew remains unchanged at 76.
• The search area was expanded to 2,100 square kilometres.
• Efforts are being made to reposition the vessel into shallower waters so divers can access the wreck more effectively before it is eventually lifted.
• Guyana is receiving assistance from French divers, along with support from Brazil and Trinidad and Tobago.
• The captain and an engineer remain in custody after testing positive for narcotics.
• Another person who oversaw the loading of the boat turned himself in for questioning on Wednesday.

This page is a research summary prepared for comment and review. It is not the article. Copyright in the original remains with News Room Guyana; 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.