Four persons died by drowning yesterday while performing a religious ritual at Philadelphia, East Bank Essequibo and their bodies have since been recovered, Divisional Commander Marlon Chapman has confirmed.
The dead have been identified as 53-year-old Radika Persaud of Lot 13 Vergenoegen, East Bank Essequibo, her son 14-year-old Ravin Persaud, her nephew Billy Narine, age 12, and her niece Annatine Persaud, age nine. Narine and Persaud who are siblings lived at Lot 2402 Onderneeming, Parfait Harmonie.
Relatives told Stabroek News that the quartet went to the river side to “throw away flowers” and failed to return. They said that as time passed they became worried and decided to visit the area where they had gone. When they arrived they found Narine floating near the koker. The other bodies were retrieved sometime later.