Lieutenant Colonel Anson Weekes, a senior command pilot in the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Air Corps, has detailed the military’s initial search-and-rescue efforts following the sinking of the MV Barima, telling the Commission of Inquiry on Thursday that poor visibility hampered attempts to locate survivors.
Testifying before the Commission, Lt Col Weekes said he received a call from his commanding officer, Lieutenant Colonel Assanah, on July 19, instructing him to prepare a GDF Bell helicopter for the operation and await the drone crew before departing.
He departed Ogle Airport at approximately 1:45 a.m. and arrived at Hampton Court around 2:15 a.m.
Weekes explained that he had not received the search coordinates before leaving Ogle. The coordinates were subsequently provided and entered into the helicopter’s GPS, identifying a search area approximately 8.5 nautical miles offshore in the Essequibo River area.
He said the crew conducted searches along the coastline but was unable to locate survivors. Poor visibility also prevented an effective search over the Essequibo River, despite the use of infrared equipment.
After returning to Hampton Court, Weekes was instructed to continue the operation. By then, he had been informed that the missing vessel was a ferry and had received its name.
The GDF pilot said further searches along the coastline yielded no results, prompting the crew to remain at Hampton Court until sunrise.
Weekes also coordinated subsequent search operations involving an Omni helicopter and an aircraft from Barbados. Both aircraft searched the area but returned without locating survivors.
He further testified that during operations conducted between July 29 and August 2, he discovered the body of one deceased person along the coastline.
The testimony forms part of the Commission’s examination of the emergency response and search-and-rescue operations following the July 18 sinking of the MV Barima.