A ferry carrying 133 people capsizes off Guyana, leaving dozens missing
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- A government ferry carrying 133 passengers and crew capsized off Guyana’s North Atlantic coast late Saturday, leaving dozens missing as rescuers search rough seas.
- Authorities say 67 people — 41 men, 11 women and 15 children — have been pulled from the water as helicopters, planes and fishing vessels scour a 1,000-square-mile area.
- The MV Barima, which makes weekly trips to remote Indigenous communities near Venezuela, capsized near the Pomeroon River amid disputed claims over overloading and reports that shifting tides played a role.
GEORGETOWN, Guyana — A government ferry carrying 133 passengers and crew members capsized in Guyana with 67 people rescued so far, authorities said Sunday, as a massive search-and-rescue operation tried to find the dozens of people still missing.
The MV Barima was sailing from the capital, Georgetown, along the North Atlantic coast to Port Kaituma, said Guyanese Prime Minister Mark Phillips, who is leading the government’s response.
Phillips said that 41 men, 11 women and 15 children had been rescued. He did not say whether authorities feared the missing passengers were dead. Helicopters, planes and fishing vessels are scanning a 1,000-square-mile area in search efforts.
The MV Barima departed shortly after 3 p.m. Saturday and ran into trouble shortly before midnight, officials said. A distress call was received at 11:01 p.m., which prompted a search-and-rescue operation involving state and private boats, Public Works Minister Juan Edghill said on Facebook.
Authorities said the vessel, which makes weekly trips to the largely Indigenous communities near Venezuela, capsized near the Pomeroon River.
Edghill said the vessel was fitted with 250 life jackets, two rigid life rafts and six inflatable life rafts. He denied claims that it could have capsized because it was overloaded with passengers or cargo.
“It had to do with the tide,” the minister said, citing statements from rescued passengers.
Wilkinson writes for the Associated Press.
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