MV Barima tragedy: Vessels with life-detecting scanners, divers deployed as search continues

As the search and rescue mission continues off the Essequibo Coast, where MV Barima capsized late last night with 133 persons on board, Public Works Minister Juan Edghill has revealed that vessels equipped with scanners that can detect life underwater have been added to the assets currently offshore in the search and rescue mission.

“With assets from our private sector partners in the oil and gas sector, we’ve been able to get vessels with scanners that could…look for signals of life, and those vessels are scanning huge areas, looking for life. So, while we were [previously] depending on eyesight or somebody screaming, we’re now scanning, and in that scanning, it will tell us where life exists, so that they could be able to move into that [area],” the minister said in a recent update.

Additionally, Edghill noted that divers have also been deployed to the site of the incident to search inside the capsized vessel.

“In our rescue efforts, we must leave no stone unturned, so we have divers that have been deployed, and we have the technology of the scanners,” the Public Works Minister stated.

MV Barima, which departed Port Georgetown on Saturday afternoon with 116 passengers and 17 crew members, capsized shortly before midnight. So far, 67 persons – 41 males, 11 females and 15 children (6 boys and 9 girls) – have been rescued.

According to Minister Edghill, the family members of these persons have been contacted. In fact, some of the rescued persons from Region One have already been flown there and reunited with their families.

“The ones that have not yet been found, we have taken the information and established lines of communication with those families… here, in Maburuma and in Whitewater. As soon as somebody is found and they get information to us, we don’t necessarily have to announce that to the public…we will now communicate directly with the family, and we will keep updating our system,” he noted.

Meanwhile, the search and rescue operation continues off the Essequibo Coast and has since been expanded to cover a much larger area out in the Atlantic waters.

“We are working to find everybody, and that is where our commitment is,” the Public Works Minister further assured.

The Government is expected to do another update at around 18:00h or 6pm today.

Earlier this afternoon, Prime Minister Mark Phillips, who is performing functions as the President and is also leading the government’s emergency response efforts, in a breifing disclosed that the search and rescue efforts were expanded from a 400-square-kilometre area to 1070 square kilometres.

See below for the full update given by the Prime Minister: 

STATEMENT BY PRIME MINISTER MARK PHILLIPS ON THE INCIDENT INVOLVING THE MV BARIMA ON ITS JOURNEY TO PORT KAITUMA, REGION ONE

Georgetown, Guyana (July 19, 2026) As of noon today, the Search and Rescue Coordination Centre continues to oversee a massive search and rescue operation in response to the incident involving the MV Barima while it was travelling to Port Kaituma, Region One.

The Guyana Defence Force Coast Guard, the lead agency in the search and rescue operation, briefed the Coordination Centre and reported that 67 persons had been rescued at the time of its update.

The rescued persons comprise 41 males, 11 females and 15 children. Of the children, six are boys and nine are girls.

Those rescued were taken to various medical facilities, including facilities at Charity and Lima. The medical response continues to be led by the Minister of Health, the Honourable Dr Frank Anthony, with support from emergency personnel. Additional psychosocial support is also being provided to family members at the Umana Yana in Georgetown.

Since first light, the search area has been expanded from 400 square kilometres to 1,070 square kilometres. Additionally, the number of assets deployed by air and sea has increased significantly, with the operation continuing to benefit from both State resources and private-sector support.

Local fisherfolk with extensive knowledge of the area have also joined the rescue efforts.

Three command centres were established as of 7:00 a.m. today in Mabaruma, Port Kaituma and at the Umana Yana in Georgetown.

The families of those rescued, as well as the relatives of all recorded passengers and crew members, have been engaged.

The captain and mate of the vessel, who were among those rescued, have returned to the area to assist with the search and rescue operation. Local leaders in Region Two, with support from the Civil Defence Commission and staff of the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security, have also been providing psychosocial support.

At the time of the incident, the MV Barima was outfitted with 250 life jackets, six inflatable life rafts and two rigid life rafts.

It should also be noted that the MV Barima has a cargo capacity of 284 tonnes. At the time of the incident, the vessel’s manifest recorded a cargo weight of 268 tonnes.

The vessel is licensed to carry more than 300 passengers. At the time of the incident, there were 116 passengers aboard, along with a crew of 17.

The MV Barima was last dry-docked in 2024 and remains within its required docking cycle. The vessel is also operating with new engines and makes approximately three to four trips to Port Kaituma each month.

The Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre has received messages of support from members of both the public and private sectors.

In keeping with established protocols, the search and rescue operation continues with the objective of accounting for every person who was aboard the vessel.

The men and women operating in the search area, along with those providing logistical support and emergency response services, must be commended for the excellent work being done.

The Government of Guyana continues to work closely with the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre. Prime Minister Brigadier (Ret’d) Mark Phillips has been leading the Government’s response, with support from several members of the Cabinet.

His Excellency President Dr Irfaan Ali and Vice President Dr Bharrat Jagdeo have remained actively engaged, ensuring that all necessary Government resources and support are made available.

Operations at the various command centres remain ongoing. Officials continue to engage with the families of those who have been rescued and with relatives who are awaiting information about their loved ones.