In Guyana, a dormitory fire broke out in the early hours of Monday, killing at least 19 students and injuring several others at a boarding school catering to remote, mostly Indigenous villages, according to authorities. The terrible event took place in Mahdia, a gold and diamond mining town located 320 kilometers south of Georgetown in the country’s southwest border region. Before midnight, a fire broke out in a dorm at a secondary school. When firefighters arrived, the building was completely engulfed in flames. The fire service expressed its heartfelt sympathy to the relatives and friends of the young souls.
According to National Security Adviser Gerald Gouveia, the school serves primarily Indigenous students between the ages of 12 and 18. The government updated the death toll to 19 students from the initially reported 20. However, officials said that several students were injured, some severely. Four children had severe injuries, while two were in critical condition. The authorities airlifted six students to Georgetown for treatment, and five others remain at a hospital in Mahdia. Ten more students are under observation.
The firefighters managed to rescue around 20 students by breaking holes in the northeastern wall of the hostel, but the department is still investigating the possible cause of the fire. The government expressed its condolences and sorrow regarding the tragedy. The President of Guyana, Irfaan Ali, called the event horrific, tragic, and painful. He assured the parents and psychologists that his government was doing everything it could to aid the children.
According to one local newspaper, it was a girls’ dormitory that the fire broke out in. The air crews fighting the fire were hampered by the rain. The administration and emergency workers had been working hard to save as many lives as possible, as Gouveia had informed the people. The opposition APNU+AFC has praised the community for its efforts to free the captive children and has pledged to conduct a thorough investigation.
