2023-05-22 15:43:00
At least 19 young people died in Guyana in the fire of a girls’ school dormitory in Mahdia, a landlocked mining town in this small country in northeastern South America, overnight from Sunday to Monday.
‘Fourteen young people died on the spot, while five died at the Mahdia district hospital. Two children remain in critical condition, while four suffer serious injuries,’ according to a statement from the fire department on Monday.
These six wounded ‘were transferred by plane to Georgetown’, the capital, while ‘five others are still hospitalized in Mahdia and ten others are under observation’, according to the same source.
A previous report, given by the government a little earlier, reported ’20 dead’ in the fire at the ‘dormitory of the secondary school of Mahdia’, in the center of the country.
Unknown origin
The fire, whose origin is not known, broke out in the girls’ dormitory where young people from 11-12 to 16-17 years old live, said on condition of anonymity a person who accompanied the help on site. The building is completely charred with walls blackened by the flames. The tin roof collapsed.
The government said five planes took off for Mahdia to help regional health officials provide additional medical supplies and carry out medical evacuations.
‘This is a major disaster. It’s horrible, it’s painful,’ President Irfaan Ali had previously declared from the airport where he had gone to wait for help.
‘In-depth investigation’
‘We are putting in place large-scale medical relief (…) I have also ordered that special arrangements be made ‘in the two major hospitals in the capital’ so that every child who needs attention receives the best possible care,” he added.
Mahdia is located about 200 km south of Georgetown. The region is affected by heavy rains.
‘We call on the authorities to carry out a thorough investigation into the causes of the fire and to provide a detailed report on what really happened. We must understand how this horrific and deadly event happened and take all necessary steps to prevent such a tragedy from happening again in the future,” said Natasha Singh-Lewis, an opposition MP.
/ATS
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