EMPHASISING that the return to normalcy is top priority, President, Dr. Irfaan Ali, on Thursday disclosed that specialised counsellors will be brought in to talk with students and teachers affected by the horrific fire at Mahdia which claimed the lives of 19 children and left several others hospitalised.

The President was at the time speaking at a press conference during which he provided an update on the government’s efforts thus far.

“We are also putting in a system where Mount Sinai [Hospital in New York] and these other organisations will have specialised counsellors that will be working in the school for a couple of weeks to talk with the children, motivate the children, and bring back some sort of normalcy in their lives. That is the priority for us and the entire school at this point,” he said.
Considering the level of trauma in the Mahdia community presently, President Ali explained that the Mahdia Secondary School has not returned to normal operation. Eighteen of the dead children attended that institution.

He assured the public that Minister of Education, Priya Manickchand, is working “assiduously” to make alternative arrangements for those who are currently writing CXC examinations.
He also said that Minister Manickchand has been working “around the clock” with teachers, children, and the officials at CXC to see what measures can be put in place, given the current situation.

Minister Manickchand is expected to provide an update on the progress made.

President Ali also explained that Mahdia and the surrounding communities where those who perished and were injured are from, are very close-knit and united.

According to the President, many families in those communities are tied to one another and live as one and would therefore share each other’s pain.

Given that closeness, he said the tragedy is having a greater effect on the residents of those communities.

All the necessary services have been extended to those communities so that the residents can also be a part of the healing process.

The Region Eight community and the rest of the nation were left shattered on Sunday when news of the fire broke. The dormitory which housed female students from several far-flung communities in the region was completely destroyed by fire. By day-break on Monday, 19 deaths – 18 students and the caretaker’s five-year-old son, were confirmed. More than a dozen students were transported to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC). Some have since been released. It was disclosed that two of those still hospitalised are in the Intensive Care Unit (ICU) and their condition is listed as critical.

The Guyana Fire Service has determined that the fire was maliciously set.

Acting Commissioner of Police, Clifton Hicken, told the Guyana Chronicle on Thursday that the police investigation has been completed and the file is currently with the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP).