With Saturday marking one week since the MV Barima ferry tragedy and with the death toll now confirmed to be 73 with dozens more missing, Prime Minister Mark Phillips this evening said the search and recovery operations will continue as long as is necessary.

“Search and recovery operations remain a national priority, with personnel and resources fully committed to the effort. These operations will continue for as long as is necessary to ensure that every possible effort is being made to account for those affected with the utmost care, dignity and respect”, he said.

Today, a number of families buried their loved ones in emotion filled funeral services. Twenty-two funerals have taken place over the past three days, with several others planned for this weekend.

Back at the search and rescue location, with no survivors found since Sunday, the search and rescue operations transitioned into a full recovery operation two days ago.

The Prime Minister said divers remain at the scene of sunken ferry still carrying out searches of the vessel as it remains on the ocean bed. One body was recovered from the vessel today.

Efforts will be made to reposition the vessel in the coming days.

“The whole diving operation today was perhaps in preparation for any effort to move the vessel, and also to search the vessel. So the diving operations today were in two parts as I mentioned, the preparation to move the vessel and to search the vessel. There has been no movement of the vessel, so it is just strictly diving”, he explained.

Prime Minister Phillips, who is heading the Government’s response to the tragedy, said the divers have been encountering some challenges with the murky and muddy waters, but have been using specialized equipment to get the job done. He said the divers will determine when they conduct their operations as they are the experts in the field.

He said a number of boats are at the site on stand-by in case the next phase of the operation begins, which would be to reposition the vessel.

“The vessel is lying on its side right now, so to put the vessel or to right the vessel is to put it on its heel and no such activity has been done as yet, strictly diving, and those vessels are there just in case”, Prime Minister Phillips said.

It was also explained that there is a possibility that more bodies will be recovered once the vessel is re-positioned.

With 76 survivors and 73 bodies recovered, officials believe there may still be at least 30 other persons missing.

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