The Human Services and Social Security Ministry has mobilised social workers and psychologists across several regions to provide ongoing psychosocial support to survivors and families affected by the MV Barima tragedy, describing the initiative as a long-term response to the national disaster.

In a social media post on Thursday, the subject Minister, Dr Vindhya Persaud, said the intervention will continue to the end of the year, with services evolving based on the needs of those affected.

“This is something we envisage that will go on till perhaps the end of the year and will evolve as we move along based on the needs that will be coming up from these interventions. So, every person who would have had someone on board the MV Barima, we would have been receiving that list either through the manifest or we would have been receiving the list from persons who are on ground in Region Two dealing with survivors and dealing with persons who are recovering their loved ones, their bodies, and we would have been compiling a list and, based on that, assigning our social workers to those families.”