More bodies recovered as Guyana intensifies search efforts in ferry tragedy

Jacqueline Charles, Miami Herald on Jul 22, 2026

By clicking submit, I authorize Arcamax and its affiliates to: (1) use, sell, and share my information for marketing purposes, including cross-context behavioral advertising, as described in our Privacy Policy , (2) add to information that I provide with other information like interests inferred from web page views, or data lawfully obtained from data brokers, such as past purchase or location data, or publicly available data, (3) contact me or enable others to contact me by email or other means with offers for different types of goods and services, and (4) retain my information while I am engaging with marketing messages that I receive and for a reasonable amount of time thereafter. I understand I can opt out at any time through an email that I receive, or by clicking here

At least 53 bodies have been recovered from a ferry that capsized off the coast of Guyana on Saturday, as officials on Wednesday continued a search for additional victims and any possible survivors and the country began three days of national mourning.

The search entered its fourth day after the vessel, the MV Barima, issued a distress signal late Saturday as it traveled from the capital, Georgetown, to a rural outpost on the northwest coast. The search operations are expected to expand with the arrival of additional regional support, Guyana authorities said.

Personnel from the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard and the Brazilian Navy were expected to arrive on Wednesday to reinforce the effort, joining Guyanan and French divers, state and private vessels, and helicopters already involved in the operation. “This is difficult,” President Mohamed Irfaan Ali told relatives on Tuesday night after members of his team showed them images of the wreckage on the seabed and explained the intensified search efforts. “It’s painful. It’s an emotional shock, a trauma, and we are here to support you throughout the process, long after the process,” he said. “The focus now is on the families, the recovery.”

Ali announced that Guyana would observe three days of national mourning from Wednesday through Friday in honor of those who died in the disaster.

In a statement issued shortly after midnight Wednesday, the government said that 16 state and private-sector vessels had been deployed to the search area. The search zone has been expanded by an additional 400 square miles. As of 6 p.m. Tuesday 76 people had been rescued and a total of 53 bodies recovered. Of the recoveries, 26 persons had been positively identified, the statement from Prime Minister Mark Phillips’ office said.