By Antonio Dey | HGP Nightly News |
ARTHUR CHUNG CONFERENCE CENTRE, LILIENDAAL — Responders mobilized during the pre-dawn hours of the MV Barima maritime disaster were specifically instructed by Minister of Public Works Bishop Juan Edghill not to publish or circulate photographs of the rescue mission to prevent a public and media outcry, the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (CoI) heard on Wednesday.
Testifying on Day 6 of the public hearings, Maritime Administration Department (MARAD) pilot trainee Shemar Morrison revealed the ministerial directive while recounting the harrowing operational conditions aboard the pilot vessel Haiama, which battled heavy Atlantic swells at maximum speed to pull dozens of freezing survivors—and at least one unresponsive casualty—from the water.
In separate testimony that placed institutional vulnerabilities under sharp judicial focus, Georgetown Lighthouse attendant David Chisholm admitted to commissioners that the historic navigational facility operated with no formal Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), lacked visual oversight of the Demerara shipping channel, and relied on ad-hoc WhatsApp messaging and unreturned VHF radio calls on Channel 16 during the unfolding tragedy.
The Rescue Mission: Ministerial Gag and 50 Survivors Pulled from Sea
Morrison, a MARAD pilot trainee certified in emergency medical care and first aid, provided a detailed chronological account of the Haiama’s deployment from the Pomeroon corridor:
- Ministerial Warning on Photos: Morrison stated under oath that during an operational briefing, Minister Juan Edghill explicitly cautioned first responders to prioritize personal safety and strictly barred them from taking and sharing photographs that could fuel media speculation.
- Navigation via Personal Cellphone: The witness revealed that incoming search-and-rescue coordinates were transmitted directly to his personal mobile phone, which he then manually plotted into the Haiama’s onboard marine navigation consoles.
- Debris Field Encounter (4:30 AM): Steaming at top engine velocity through rough open seas, the crew first encountered floating wreckage around 4:30 AM on July 19, 2026—spotting scattered life jackets, commercial iceboxes, domestic gas cylinders, and buoyant cargo provisions.
- Reaching the Zone (4:55 AM): The vessel arrived on target twenty-five minutes later, immediately initiating recovery operations in the dark.
“We were going at maximum speed… outside in those conditions,” Morrison recalled of the treacherous navigation.
Among the initial cluster of 24 individuals pulled from the Atlantic were vessel master Captain Kevin Price and First Mate Rondell Roberts. Morrison administered first aid to both senior crew members, noting that while Roberts had escaped visible trauma, he was wrapped in emergency thermal blankets to prevent acute hypothermia before staying behind on the water to guide other approaching search craft.
“I transported 50 survivors… the First Mate actually stayed back to assist the other vessel I believe… one unresponsive person at the time,” Morrison testified.
By 7:30 AM, the Haiama docked safely at the Pomeroon floating base with 50 survivors. Morrison confirmed checking one unresponsive victim brought onto the deck, finding no detectable pulse, respiration, or signs of life.
The Georgetown Lighthouse: Operating Without SOPs or Visual Reach
Following Morrison’s account, the inquiry scrutinized the institutional preparedness of the Georgetown Lighthouse Department, receiving testimony from attendant David Chisholm, who has staffed the facility since March 2025.
Chisholm’s disclosures revealed significant structural and procedural deficits at the nerve center of Guyana’s primary commercial port:
- Blind to the Demerara Channel: Chisholm admitted that the lighthouse cannot visually monitor vessel movement across the Demerara River channel, leaving operators dependent entirely on external third-party digital tracking platforms and radio chatter.
- No Formal Operating Procedures: The witness conceded under questioning that the department possesses no written Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs), protocols, or codified emergency flowcharts, relying instead on informal on-the-job training passed down orally from senior colleagues.
- The 11:01 PM WhatsApp Distress Alert: On the night of July 18, 2026, Chisholm received an initial distress notification via WhatsApp from the Automatic Identification System (AIS) tower at 11:01 PM. He forwarded the alert to his immediate supervisor and the Director of the Maritime Rescue Coordination Centre (MRCC), Captain John Flores.
- Channel 16 Radio Silence: Directed by the Harbour Master to urgently hail the vessel, Chisholm repeatedly broadcast distress calls to the MV Barima over marine VHF Channel 16, but was met with complete radio silence:
“You would call the vessel name… no response,” Chisholm testified, describing the silence that met his continuous emergency hails until his shift concluded at 8:00 AM on Sunday, July 19.
The Day 6 revelations reinforce key themes emerging from the inquiry: front-line emergency crews working under severe equipment and communication limitations, operational oversight hindered by the absence of codified procedures, and executive concerns over public information management as the disaster unfolded.
