…Govt to cover for funeral, other expenses as 11 bodies given to families for burial

As search efforts continue following Saturday night’s capsizing of the MV Barima, authorities Wednesday night reported that 53 bodies have been recovered while the rescue count has been revised to 76. This update was provided by Prime Minister (PM) Mark Phillips during a press conference at his Camp Street, Georgetown office. He noted that of the bodies recovered, 26 have been positively identified by relatives, with 11 of them being repatriated to their respective communities for funeral arrangements, as requested by families.

“Many of this work is being done through the regional authorities. Wakes, funerals, all of these activities are supported financially and otherwise in keeping with the wishes of the family,” he said, noting that this includes adhering to religious rites as requested by families. “We will work right through to the end to bring closure to every family member who would have lost a loved one,” PM Phillips added. Of the bodies identified, eight are males, three are females while 15 are children (four males and 11 females). Of those that remain unidentified, three are children. The PM noted that there is enough storage space to accommodate the bodies as they are being recovered, with four refrigerated containers being used to bolster the capacities of the nearby hospitals. The containers are at the Suddie Regional Hospital. “The plan is, as we recover bodies, we identify, we do the postmortem, and we hand over as early as possible to the families for the funeral arrangement. So that storage capacity…is capable of holding the bodies in the interim as we move to the next stage which is handing over the bodies to the families,” he explained.