–over flagrant use of weedicide

TWO teenagers have been hospitalised after inhaling the toxic smell of a poison that was sprayed on grass by a neighbour in Diamond, East Bank Demerara, earlier this week.

The situation is of great concern to Mahase Roop of Diamond New Housing Scheme, whose children’s health has been affected by the incident.

He told the Guyana Chronicle on Friday that his neighbour is in the habit of spraying her yard with various poisonous substances. He believes it to be the cause of his children’s illness.
The shop owner explained that this practice has been going on for two years now, even when his neighbour uses a brush cutter to tame the grass.

He is of the opinion that she also uses chemicals to rid her yard of grass, and said that although he’s spoken to her about it on many occasions, she would just laugh it off and say, “The smell gon done just now.”

Roop said that last Thursday, the smell of the poison was so overwhelming that his 19-year-old daughter had to be hospitalised for more than five days after she began having difficulty breathing.

She has since been diagnosed as having poisons in her lungs and liver, and on the advice of the doctor,has had to go and live elsewhere.

Then on Tuesday, his 13-year-old son had to be rushed to the hospital after complaining of feeling unwell when the woman sprayed her yard. The child was reportedly treated and sent away, but was diagnosed as having a virus in his blood from which he is still recuperating.

Roop told the Guyana Chronicle that when the matter was reported to the police, they not only came and took away the weed killer and the spray cans, but they even took the neighbour down to the police station.

He later learnt that she was placed on bail and released, and that the matter is currently with the DPP for advice.

Roop, who runs a shop in the neighbourhood, said that even his customers are affected by the smell whenever the woman happens to use the weedicide.

He said that another neighbour has the woman before the court for a similar matter, after losing all their livestock due to suspected poisoning.

He is in the process of filing a report with the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), and would like the authorities to step in, since the health of he and his family and others are at stake.