Relative of Lopinot drowning victim tells rescue volunteers: Take your duties seriously

A relative of Theresa Lynch, is calling on volunteers from private rescue groups to take their responsibilities seriously as he feels members of a certain group were more concerned about being featured in the media than finding his relative.

Lynch, 43, was swept away while trying to cross the Surrey river, Lopinot, during heavy rainfall last Wednesday morning, after tending to crops in a forested part of Surrey Village.

Lynch's body was found on the eastern side of the Arouca river last Friday.

Speaking with Newsday at the Forensic Science Centre, St James, on Monday, one of Lynch's relatives said while he was grateful for the help of villagers who offered to form search parties, he was disappointed in the approach of certain private organisations and felt their response was lacking in certain areas.

Recalling the afternoon when Lynch was swept away, the relative said he was approached by members of a rescue organisation but was shocked by their response when he told them about the incident.

"I got to the Arima Old Road on the bridge and they pulled up, they asked where she (Theresa) was, I said she was somewhere in the river.

"They said they had to go to Malabar to drop off a car first and then they said they would come back to search.

"Everybody's looking for fame, everybody wants to form a group to look for missing people but they don't have their priorities in order.

"They have to do their work more serious and if they claim finding people is what they're about then that's what they need to be about, because it seems they want to be in the newspapers, they want to be on the news."

The relative said the community was still deeply shaken by the incident and he implored other residents to exercise extreme caution during heavy rainfall for their own safety.

He said throughout their searches, villagers and relatives held out hope that Lynch somehow survived being swept away.

"That shocked everyone how it happened. Everyone is still trying to figure out what happened.“