More than a month after the MV Barima disaster claimed scores of lives and plunged families and entire communities into grief, the Ministry of Human Services and Social Security is finally preparing to launch an online counselling platform for survivors and bereaved families—raising troubling questions about why such an accessible intervention was not deployed sooner.

Minister Dr Vindhya Persaud announced Sunday that the ministry will launch EMBRACE, a national online counselling platform intended to connect survivors and families affected by the July 18 tragedy with counsellors and specialists, including Guyanese professionals in the diaspora.

The platform is expected to go live this week, beginning with families affected by the Barima disaster before being expanded nationally.