Prime Minister Mark Phillips / Facebook

A search and rescue operation for dozens missing people continued on Sunday

Sixty-seven people have so far been rescued after a ferry carrying 116 passengers and 17 crew sunk off the coast of Guyana, local officials have said.

Fifteen children are among those recovered after the MV Barima capsized following its departure from the capital Georgetown on Saturday. Dozens of people are still missing.

A distress call was received at 23:01 local time (03:01 GMT Sunday) triggering a search operation involving government teams and privately-owned boats, Public Works Minister Juan Edghill said.

"We're hopeful we'll be able to account for all that were on board," he told reporters as emergency teams continued their search for survivors on Sunday afternoon.

Those rescued also include 41 men and 11 women, Prime Minister Mark Phillips told media. He added that the boat's captain was among that number.

The captain has since returned to the area to assist the "significantly increased" rescue operation, he added, as crews more than doubled their search area on Sunday.

Phillips said the boat had been within its weight capacity at the time of the incident, and that it was licensed to hold more than 300 passengers.

The names of those onboard will be released once rescue operations and medical checks are complete, he said on Facebook.

Assistance centres have been set up for relatives of those rescued and passengers still missing.

The MV Barima was travelling to Port Kaituma when it capsized near Iron Punt.

Edghill said it was fitted with 250 life jackets, two rigid life crafts and six inflatable life crafts.

It was built in 1939 and is 40m (131ft) long, according to a listing on VesselFinder.