Authorities silent for days after diver dies during MV Barima salvage operation

(Kaieteur News) – State authorities remained silent for four days following the death of a 66-year-old Venezuelan diver during the salvage operation of the sunken MV Barima in the Essequibo River, issuing an official statement only after an activist publicly disclosed details of the incident on Facebook.

The deceased, identified as Luis Martinez, was employed as a diver during an operation to refloat a submerged vessel off the coast of Region Two when he reportedly failed to resurface.

In a statement issued on Sunday, the Guyana Police Force (GPF) said investigators were probing an incident which occurred on Wednesday, October 28, 2026, at approximately 18:30 hrs., about 10 nautical miles off the coast of Anna Regina.