Dozens are feared dead after a ferry carrying 133 people capsized off the coast of Guyana late Saturday, with authorities suggesting an inaccurate passenger list and drug use among the crew may have contributed to the incident.
No survivors have been found since Sunday afternoon when Guyanese authorities announced they had rescued 67 people, including 15 children.
The captain and other crew members are currently in police custody, Public Works Minister Juan Edghill said at a press conference late Sunday.
“Search and rescue is still ongoing,” Edgehill said. “So to all the families who are worried about their loved ones, we are doing everything humanly possible to find them.”
The MV Barima, carrying 116 passengers and 17 crew members, capsized off the North Atlantic coast about 11 miles off the coast while en route from the capital George Town to the village of Port Kaitsuma, authorities said.
Air traffic control received a distress call from the ferry around 11pm on Saturday and began a search and rescue operation.
Edgehill said the initial response was hampered by darkness and the lack of vessels equipped with scanners that could search for survivors, forcing rescuers to rely on sight and hearing.
Mr Edgehill said companies in the oil and gas sector had since deployed ships equipped with scanners and the government had divers enter the ferry to search for bodies. Authorities also expanded the search area from 400 square kilometers to 1,040 square kilometers (401 square miles).
Mr Edgehill initially insisted on Sunday afternoon that there was no sign of “negligence” on the part of the ferry operator. But on Sunday evening, the ship announced that the captain and at least one other crew member had tested positive for marijuana.
Additionally, many rescued people are not listed on the ferry’s manifest, indicating that the ferry’s passenger list is inaccurate, and rescue efforts are being hampered as authorities do not know how many people are being searched.
The minister said the boat would undergo maintenance in 2024 and was scheduled for dry docking (the process of temporarily removing a vessel from the water to inspect or repair problems) later this year.
The disaster tore families apart.
Leon Murray, a passenger on the ferry, told local news outlet Ignite News that about four hours after leaving Georgetown, someone yelled that the boat was sinking.
After the boat capsized, Murray managed to swim to the surface and used a life jacket to stay afloat. He drifted adrift, cried for help, and found his son and three others clinging to a floating box.
Murray said he and his son survived, but his wife, daughter and four grandchildren have never been found. “Six of them are gone.”
Guyana’s Prime Minister Mark Phillips said in a statement that the ship reported a cargo weight of 268 tonnes out of a carrying capacity of 284 tonnes. He said the ferry was authorized to carry more than 300 passengers and was equipped with 250 life jackets, six inflatable life rafts and two rigid life rafts.
But by Sunday evening, Phillips told a news conference that an investigation had been launched into wrongdoing involving officers from the police, defense forces and maritime administration.
“Let me be clear: If negligence, misconduct or criminal activity is found, those responsible will face the full force of law.”
