…Fisheries dept. to launch investigation

OVER a dozen Pritipaul Singh Investment Inc. employees were rushed to the Woodlands Hospital, Georgetown, after an alleged gas leak left some persons in an unconscious state on Monday.

Details of the gas leak at the Mc Doom, East Bank Demerara location of the fisheries, remain sketchy, but, workers have confirmed that a gas leak did occur reportedly at around 14:00h on Monday. The name of the gas has not been verified.
“I just went in deh, and I see a young lady fall down in the compound,” a male employee who had assisted in rushing some of his colleagues to the private hospital in the city, told the Guyana Chronicle.

Another employee, who declined to disclose her name over fear of losing her job, told this newspaper that she was in the Glazing Department when she realised that something was wrong. “We just start smelling gas, at first it wasn’t that high but the gas in the air got stronger and stronger, and people start falling down,” she related.

According to her, among those severely affected were three pregnant women and persons with asthma. Those in the Glazing Department were instructed by their supervisor to evacuate the building.

“We ran out in the compound but the smell was still strong,” the employee said, as she recalled seeing more persons collapsing.

Another female employee added, “one of the pregnant woman fall down on she belly, so we had to rush she to the hospital.”

When the Guyana Chronicle visited the PSI Mc Doom facilities, workers who were standing on the road were tight lipped about the incident. A request to speak with a senior representative of the company was met with objection, and according to the guard on duty, nothing had occurred at the facility.

Meanwhile, the Ministry of Agriculture when contacted by this newspaper was unaware of the incident as they had received no report of a gas leak or gas explosion. However, Chief Fisheries Officer Denzil Roberts said that although no report was made, the Department of Fisheries will be launching an investigation.