As sugar workers call for a thorough investigation into the death of Ulric Leonard Johnson, who was electrocuted at the Skeldon estate on Saturday, the probe has so far found no negligence on the part of the Guyana Sugar Corpora-tion (GuySuCo).
This is according to GuySuCo Director of Human Resources Jairam Petam, who told Stabroek News that internal investigations into the death should be completed by the end of the week.
Johnson, 23, of Leeds, Number 50 Village, Corentyne, was electrocuted while cleaning a transformer in a boiler
house at around 10am on Saturday. Stabroek News learned that he was killed instantly and he was pronounced dead on arrival at the Skeldon Hospital at 10:30AM.
Stabroek News was told that workers protested on Monday over the accident and called for a thorough investigation. Efforts to contact Skeldon Estate for a comment on the accident proved futile as officials were in a meeting.
Petam, however, spoke to Stabroek News via telephone and he said GuySuCo is assisting the family with funeral expenses.
According to him, Johnson was an experienced electrician. He had approximately five years’ experience in the field. As a result, it was expected that he would have been well aware of the dangers in cleaning a transformer.
Petam further stated that the employee was wearing protective clothing at the time, including a helmet, gloves, safety overalls and boot. He also stated that Johnson had done similar jobs on a few other occasions to satisfaction.
According to Petam, GuySuCo has always invested in the safety of all its workers by providing the necessary safety equipment. He noted too that workers are educated on safety in relation to their jobs.
Johnson’s family declined to comment on his death when contacted.
