HGP NIGHTLY NEWS – Three bright emergency flares piercing the darkness over the Essequibo Coast gave an aerial search team its strongest indication of where the MV Barima was in distress, but what the pilots could not see below immediately caused “grave concern.”
Captain Learie Barclay told the Commission of Inquiry that despite the flares lighting up the area, there was no visible sign of the ferry on the water.
“We were looking for a ferry, a reasonably sized boat. Unfortunately, we saw nothing of consequence below us,” Barclay testified.
The Roraima Airways pilot said his crew had arrived in the search area at approximately 1:56 a.m. on July 19 after departing Ogle 20 minutes earlier.
One of the first factors considered was the tide.
“The first question I ask is, where is the tide going?” Barclay explained, noting that anything floating on the surface would be carried by the movement of the water.
After being informed that the tide was moving outward, the crew continued farther offshore from the coordinates initially provided.
Barclay then switched to the international distress frequency of 121.5 MHz and immediately detected a strong emergency locator transmitter signal.
“So, we continued on that line because the signal kept getting stronger and stronger,” he recalled.
The crew soon spotted the first emergency flare, followed by a second and third.
Barclay admitted that locating the correct area on the first attempt involved “a bit of luck,” since the pilots could otherwise have spent additional time flying a search grid.
But even after circling overhead, there was still no visible sign of the ferry.
“We expressed concern in the cockpit. Grave concern. Because the flares were very bright, but we saw nothing of consequence on the sea,” Barclay told the Commission.
The crew remained in the area for approximately another five minutes before concluding that darkness severely limited what could be accomplished from the air.
Barclay said, “It’s pitch black. There’s nothing we could see,” as he explained why the aircraft eventually returned to Ogle.
The testimony has provided the Commission with further details about the conditions confronting aerial responders during the first hours of the search for the MV Barima.
