Tragic Incident on Lake Maracaibo

CARACAS/MARACAIBO (Reuters) – At least two people died and four were declared missing following the sinking of an oil barge operated by a contractor of Venezuelan state-run energy company PDVSA at Lake Maracaibo, PDVSA said on Thursday.

Sources and an internal report from the company had indicated four fatalities from the accident earlier on Thursday. However, PDVSA stated that rescue efforts to find the four missing individuals had not concluded.

“PDVSA reports the unfortunate sinking of barge Chantase G of company SOSCA, provider of oil well maintenance services, in Lake Maracaibo due to poor weather conditions affecting the area,” the company said in a release.

Additionally, 19 people were successfully rescued on Thursday morning at the accident site, according to the report.

Incidents involving barges that transport Venezuelan oil and fuel between domestic ports and to the Caribbean have become frequent. Notably, a significant fuel oil spill near Tobago from a capsized barge navigating from Venezuela affected several Caribbean nations in March.