– reportedly swept into Atlantic during swimming outing
By Ramona Luthi
A seven-year-old girl is feared dead following an incident on Saturday afternoon which resulted in her being swept into the Atlantic Ocean behind the Guyana Marriott Hotel in Georgetown.
Missing is Jayleena Titus of Lot 29 Second Street, Alberttown, Georgetown.
Jayleena resides with her father, Richard Titus and her mother, Onecia Henry, along with her three other siblings, ages 10, 15 and 19.
Feared dead: Jayleena Titus
On the day that the seven-year-old was last seen, she had left home with her father, 10-year-old brother and eight-year-old cousin to go to the seawalls, behind the Marriott Hotel, as was frequent for them to do on weekends.
Thirty-eight-year-old Henry told Guyana Times that according to her 10-year-old son, the three children were playing close to the water behind the Hotel, while his father was some distance away.
Richard Titus has indicated to his wife and Police that he was only a short distance away and he had been monitoring the children all the time, up until the incident which caused him his youngest child, as he became occupied briefly.
The 10-year-old child recalled that he continuously warned his sister and cousin against going closer to the water. However, he found himself having to run after his younger sister numerous times as she kept disregarding his warnings.
The tearful mother on Thursday morning said her son told her that at around 17:00h, as he and his cousin were playing, he noticed that Jayleena was not around. After scanning the area for several minutes, the young child recounted seeing his sister being swept away by the strong water currents.
“He tell me how he run in the water and try fuh grab she hand but the waves deh too strong. Then he seh he shout fuh he cousin and told him to ‘call daddy! Call daddy! Look the wave gone with Jayleena!’” the distraught mother of four said to this publication.
After being alerted, Titus reportedly jumped into the water in an attempt to save his youngest child. However, this proved futile.
The matter was reported at the Alberttown Police Station then the Brickdam Police Station and a search for Jayleena Titus was launched.
Anyone with information leading to the missing child is asked to contact the nearest Police station or her mother on telephone number 667-8860.
