Coast Guard had considered dragging MV Barima closer to shore- fisherman

Last Updated on Tuesday, 10 November 2026, 14:13 by Written By Denis Chabrol

A veteran Guyanese fisherman on Tuesday told the Commission of Inquiry into the capsizing of the MV Barima four months ago the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Coast Guard Commander, David Shamsudeen had toyed with the idea of moving the vessel closer to the Essequibo Coast

Fisherman, Haresh Singh told the inquiry made up of experts in the field of law and maritime operations that the “plan was to pull the boat to shore” by tying the 87-year old vessel to barge before pumping out the water.

Mr Singh said when the vessel was first discovered in the afternoon of July 19, he and other persons aboard his fishing vessel had estimated that the MV Barima was 55 feet below the Atlantic sea.

“The only thing that could have been done is we get to to pull it to shore,” he told the five-member probe team. Government has since hired BK International to salvage the MV Barima located about 10 nautical miles off the Essequibo Coast. About 100 persons have perished in the disaster.

Mr Singh said at about 3 PM, those aboard his fishing vessel spotted a life raft with 11 persons, including an injured child. He testified that they were not wearing life jackets.

Using locally-acquired knowledge about tidal movements, and colour and smell of the seawater, he said they were able to locate the area where the vessel went down. He recalled smelling the extra rank water that also appeared very oily and later spotting bottles of perfumes and drinks floating in the water

He said there was no mobile phone signal available at a certain distance offshore and encountered a coast guard vessel closer to land on his return.

Meanwhile, Maritime Administration (MARAD) Inspector Christopher Bailey told the inquiry that an optional inspection of the MV Barima conducted one year ago revealed several shortcomings. They included no Automatic Identification System (AIS) that is used to track vessels, inoperable radar system, and the defective Emergency Position-Indicating Radio Beacon. He said the radar system was not on the equipment list.

Mr Singh said over the years trawlers, pontoons and small ships had gone down in that area due to the “roughness of the water.”

Mr Bailey said the ferry was exempted from inspection and so that optional inspection that wad done a year ago was done at the request of MARAD’s director.