The horrific blaze that claimed the lives of at least 19 children at a schoolgirls’ dormitory in the South American country of Guyana, may have been arson, said the police and fire services on Monday.
Earlier in the day, the Fire Service said that the building, located in the central city of Mahdia, was ‘completely engulfed in flames’ by the time firefighters made it to the sight around midnight.
14 children lost their lives in the incident at the scene and another five died in hospital. Six wounded kids were airlifted to the capital, Georgetown, while around 17 others were admitted to the local hospital.
“14 youths died at the scene, while five died at the Mahdia District Hospital,” according to a statement from the fire department.
“Initial investigations suggest that it was maliciously set and our investigations are continuing,” police commissioner Clifton Hicken said during a press conference.
He added that no suspects have yet been identified.
He further said that DNA analysis, which is required to identify 13 victims, will be conducted ‘expeditiously’.
Earlier, the police had released a statement saying that one student who had witnessed fire in the dormitory bathroom, was awakened by screams.
Mark Ramotar, the director of the police communications department earlier on Monday said that most of the 19 children who lost their lives in the incident, were Indigenous. “The dorm usually houses students from Indigenous communities,” he said.
The youngest of the victims was a five-year-old boy, the son of the dormitory’s caretaker.
As per a list from the Ministry of Education, all the other victims were girls and included several siblings and at least one set of twins.
President Irfaan Ali met with some parents of the deceased after visiting Mahdia’s hospital. He released a statement saying that the country will hold three days of mourning.
Ali’s statement further added that the victims’ families are being provided with counselling and other support.
“There are no words that can describe this magnitude of pain that our brothers and sisters are going through,” he said. “This is a pain we must carry as a nation and as a family.”
“This is a major disaster. It is horrible, it is painful,” he added.
Ali further asserted that he had ordered arrangements to be made in Georgetown’s two major hospitals “so that every single child who requires attention be given the best possible opportunity to get that attention.”
Anger mounts over the incident in Guyana
On Monday, around 50 people, who were the relatives and friends of the victims, took to the streets of Chenapau, a village close to Mahdia that is home to many of the school’s pupils.
“The sheer pain, the agony, the trauma,” Michael McGarrell, who lost two nieces in the blaze, told AFP. “Who will be held responsible?”
“Why are school children grilled up in death traps? What are we going to tell the parents?” said McGarrell, an activist with the Amerindian People’s Association (APA) which is often at odds with the government over land rights.
“Firefighters did manage to rescue some 20 students by breaking holes in the north-eastern wall of the building,” the fire service said.
The government said officials were supporting efforts at Ogle Airport in the capital to “receive the critical patients and coordinate an emergency plan of action.”
“A full-scale medical emergency action plan has been launched,” it added.
(With inputs from agencies)
