In the days that followed, a huge search was carried out by ships, planes and helicopters. Only about half the bodies were ever recovered and they were brought to the Regional Hospital in Cork. Shortly afterwards, many relatives of the dead flew from India and Canada and travelled by bus along the coast in order to be near to the place where their loved ones died. At Ahakista, they stopped and threw wreaths into the sea. They expressed a wish that some type of memorial be erected to commemorate the disaster and in the months that followed, Cork County Council purchased this site and built a memorial. It was officially opened on 23 June 1986 at a ceremony attended by the Foreign Ministers of Ireland, India and Canada.