Dear Editor,
Nineteen of Guyana’s young children are dead in Mahdia. A fire in a school dormitory ended their young lives, with seven more injured and being attended to, as this is written. May they make it through, despite the scars and traumas that are sure to visit them for the rest of their lives. For the families, hurting parents, siblings, and others, we hope that they will find the strength somehow to manage and to continue. This is not one set of parents, but a community of parents, a possibly huge number of villages spread across different places, that are impacted for the worst.
I took a step back when the early online headline slapped me right between the eyes: 20? Must be a typo. Except that it isn’t; though there was the small blessing of one less dead, with the grim tally of burnt bodies still now at 19 in the blink of an eye, in one incendiary swoop. What could have gone so wrong so quickly that so many were felled in such harrowing circumstances, would be the first question. I don’t think that I can recall a fire, or an occurrence in Guyana, in the last 50 years, that had such a high death toll at one going. The fact that this is a relatively remote community, a segment of the population that is largely poor, and the victims are of such tender years makes this more than a calamity, it is a national tragedy. I heard that it is all girls, which only adds to the sorrow that hangs like a pall over this country at this time. It is at times like these that our humanity must show through, and in the most tangible terms. What to do, and how to go about?
I have heard about prayers, and I firmly believe in those. May each Guyanese heart offer at least one for the fallen and another for their stricken families. I would suggest that we rally around these brothers and sisters (fathers and mothers) and extend a hand in whatever little or big way that we can. Let us do so quietly, and with every regard for the dignity of the mourning families. I think that they could use any simple graciousness, as stirred by the care, compassion, and love in our spirits.
Though a rather scarce commodity in this country, let that love shine through in this time of community pain, I would say national pain. I note the presence of Prime Minister Philips, Ministers Benn and Manickchand, May the families be visited with peace. May this Guyana of ours that grieves for its dead do so with dignity, grace, and godliness.
Sincerely,
GHK Lall
