Sunday outing turns tragic…

Nine-year-old drowns in creek near Wauna Bridge
–grieving mother laments ‘strange happenings’ in the area

THE North West District villages of Hosororo and Wauna in Region One were last Sunday plunged into mourning following news of the drowning of nine-year-old Dinesh Saktue of Hosororo Hill.

Dinesh, late Grade Five pupil of the Hosororo Primary School, died shortly after noon on Sunday in the black waters at the popular Wauna Bridge.

His deeply distraught mother, Juliet Valenzuela, trying to hold back the tears, spoke with the Guyana Chronicle Tuesday, relating that she and her husband, Tullsiram Saktu, had gone to church earlier in the day and had left Dinesh and his other siblings at home.

His elder siblings were preparing to take their cousin, Nicholas, visiting from Venezuela, to the Wauna Creek for an outing, and Dinesh’s older sister, Anisa Dhanraj, was also going on the trip, but was against taking Dinesh with them. However, as they were boarding the vehicle to leave, Anisa recanted her decision and decided to take along a very tearful Dinesh, who was begging to go.

Anisa maintained a close watch over Dinesh as they all got into the water, but an emergency situation caused her to exit the creek and head uphill for a short while, and that was when tragedy struck.

Juliet said she learnt that there were three big empty boats tied in the water, and in Anisa’s absence, the boys playfully began pushing one of the boats about the water. Unaware that Dinesh was behind the boat, they gave it a hard yank and the boat slammed into the child’s head, causing him to fall backwards into the water.

Even though he was experiencing great pain, he managed to wave his hands in the water, beckoning help, but the others apparently misinterpreted his signals and did not immediately attempt to rescue him.

When eventually they did realise that he was in trouble and was beckoning for help, others jumped into the water after him, but by then he had completely disappeared in the black waters of the creek.

The members of the group were all afraid to break the news to his parents at church, and so it was not until about two hours later that Dinesh’s parents learnt of the disaster.

His mother said that when she arrived on the scene, all she could have done was kneel in the water and ask God to give her strength. Dinesh had disappeared without a trace.

A search party was immediately mobilised, and it set to work searching for the missing child, but it was not until approximately 19:30 hrs that his body was retrieved.

“Dinesh was the youngest of six brothers, but he was my strongest child. I am building my house, and he would help me make the foundation. He crushed bricks; he was a dutiful child, loving and caring…,” his mother Juliet recalled.

Albeit, the family is convinced that there are strange things happening in the water at Wauna Bridge lately. People are now coming in and engaging in all sorts of practices. “Just two weeks ago, a lady also died out there, and we feel that these things (strange practices) should be stopped,” Juliet lamented.

(By Shirley Thomas)

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