–KFC staff had illegally removed cover to clear blockage
TWO-year-old Hailey Thomas and her mother, of 83 William Street, Kitty, almost drowned when they fell into a manhole on the pavement in front of the KFC outlet in Stabroek yesterday afternoon, sparking chaos in downtown Georgetown; and up to late yesterday, doctors were treating and monitoring their condition at the Georgetown Public Hospital.

Vendors and shoppers in the Stabroek Market area told the Guyana Chronicle that the manhole cover had been (illegally) removed by employees of the KFC outlet in undertaking to ease the ‘fat’ out of the sewerage chamber. This publication has been informed by the Guyana Water Inc (GWI) that the fast food outlet does have a grease trap, which would undergo scheduled inspection by the GWI this month-end. The GWI continuously encourages businesses to ensure that they use the traps correctly, and clean them regularly.

This publication was told yesterday that because the KFC employees had removed the cover to gain access to the sewerage chamber, there is a strong likelihood that the business entity had not been using the grease trap properly. Moreover, they had broken the law in removing the manhole cover to gain access to the channel.

The law states that manhole covers are to be removed only by employees of the Guyana Water Inc (GWI) and those from the Mayor and City Council (M&CC), and removal of the manhole covers is only to facilitate clearing of the chamber.

The cover of the manhole on the pavement in front of the KFC outlet in Stabroek was removed by KFC staffers, and two lengths of PVC pipe had been used by them to attempt to clear the chamber. Afterwards, they had retreated, leaving the manhole open and the pipe still stocked within.

Persons in the area said the woman was walking with her toddler on the pavement when, because of the amount of ‘fat’ which had overflowed from the manhole, it was difficult to notice that its cover had been removed, and both she and the toddler fell into the hole. A chivalrous gentleman who was in the area dived into the manhole and pulled the duo out to safety, whereupon they were rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital for medical attention.

Persons in the area said that when the incident was reported to the KFC shift manager, she became very abusive, allegedly slamming a steel door in the face of those who raised concerns, and causing the crowd to become agitated.

This incident saw persons again raising several concerns about the operations of the fast food outlet, with some calling for its immediate shutdown. Only last year, the food chain came in for harsh reviews when inspectors from overseas arrived in the country and found that the KFC and Pizza Hut restaurants were operating in very unsanitary conditions, which were hazardous to the public’s health.
Several calls made to the mobile number of managing director of the KFC, Mr. Deo Singh, for comment went unanswered yesterday.
Written By Leroy Smith