Dear Editor,
I pen this letter with a heart heavy and concern for the tragic events that unfolded at Skeldon Market on the Corentyne, Berbice, this past Monday night – a night that cast a shadow of devastation and despair upon our local community. The flames, igniting at around 19:00hrs, ruthlessly ravaged through the market, leaving a haunting scene of destruction in its wake. Numerous stalls, including two vital grocery stores, fell victim to the fire. The agonizing wait for the Guyana Fire Service compounded the agony, as their delayed response and repeated shortages of water left vendors and stall owners to fend for themselves, courageously forming bucket brigades to combat the merciless blaze.
Furthermore, as reported in today’s Kaieteur News, it sheds light on a proposal initially made to install a fire hydrant at the back of the market, a potentially crucial preventive measure that could have aided the firefighters last night. However, as the Councillor articulated in the newspaper, the proposal was rejected by the Mayor in favour of an alternative location that turned out to be non-functional and difficult to access, last night. This Mayor appears to lack the foresight and vision required to lead and implement sound urban and regional planning initiatives in Corriverton and should be replaced with someone more vibrant and intellectually capable.
In addition to this, the decision by the Mayor today to lock the market for more than 16 hours after the conclusion of the fire, preventing people from assessing the damage from the fire and looting, not only hampers the immediate recovery efforts but also strips away another day of livelihood from the already suffering vendors. What really got to me is that when vendors tried to talk to the Mayor about their losses, the Mayor just brushed them off. He told them to go to the police, shutting down any chance of help from his constabulary force. It feels like he doesn’t care about the vendors or what they’re going through. He should be removed now.
Sincerely,
(Name and Address Withheld)
