Two Venezuelan nationals, including a five-year-old child, have died after a pirogue carrying 29 people overturned off Los Iros Beach, on the south coast of Trinidad, during an illegal sea crossing to Venezuela on Wednesday.
The child has been identified as Brithanny Linneth Yanett León Palacios, who would have turned six years old on October 6, while the body of a man was retrieved by members of the Trinidad and Tobago Coast Guard.
The girl’s body was discovered by members of the Hunters Search and Rescue Team (HSRT) headed by Vallence Rambharat who told the Trinidad Express newspaper that the child had boarded the pirogue with her mother and grandmother as they attempted to return to their homeland.
Rambharat said all the other persons on board the boat, including five other children, had been accounted for.
A resident of Los Iros, who spoke to the Express on the condition of anonymity, said the tragedy unfolded before midday, when items of clothing and other personal belongings were seen floating near the shoreline.
The incident is the latest in a string of fatal incidents involving Venezuelan migrants attempting the perilous sea crossing between Trinidad and Venezuela.