Body of fire victim to arrive in Guyana on Thursday

The body of seven-year-old Shaniya Persaud, who succumbed at the Shriners Hospital in Galveston, Texas, last Sunday after undergoing a much-needed surgery which led to the amputation of her leg and fingers, will be flown back to Guyana to be laid to rest.

Saving Hands Emergency Aid (SHEA), the Non-Governmental Organisation which assisted in acquiring overseas treatment for the child, has confirmed that after completing all required post-mortem procedures, Persaud’s body has already been released from the hospital to the funeral home in the United States, and as such, arrangements were made to have the child’s remains transported back to Guyana on September 19.
The body will be received by Sandy’s Funeral Home in Georgetown, after which the family will make further funeral arrangements.
The news of the child’s passing was announced by both the Rotary Club of Demerara and Saving Hands Emergency Aid (SHEA) via a social media post.
The announcement came one day after SHEA revealed that the child’s wounds were not healing, especially those suffered internally. Additionally, Persaud had one of her legs, a few fingers, and a section of her ear amputated during surgery, a decision taken to save her life.
The now deceased child had received second and third-degree burns to about 97.8 per cent of her body when her North Mon Repos, East Coast Demerara house went up in flames at about 01:00h on August 5, while she was asleep.
Persaud was medevaced from the Georgetown Public Hospital on August 10 to the Cheddi Jagan International Airport, where she boarded a chartered flight to the United States.
During the short period, several corrective surgeries were performed in an effort to save the child’s life.