The interim report on the Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the mining pit collapse, and subsequent death of a miner at Rock Creek, Puruni, Region Seven (Cuyuni-Mazaruni) on October 8, 2016, was handed over to Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman.
Natural Resources Minister Raphael Trotman receives the interim report from Rear Admiral (retired) Gary Best
Presidential Advisor on the Environment, Rear Admiral (retired) Gary Best, who had been commissioned to probe the incident, presented the report to the Minister at his Brickdam, Stabroek office.
In accepting the report, which was originally due on November 4, 2016, the Minister said every death in the mining industry is regrettable and its frequency is particularly concerning as the Guyana gold industry has taken off and is poised to make a high declaration this year.
The Minister noted that he is confident that Advisor Best’s report will provide a better understanding of the circumstances that led to these occurrences and how to prevent them. “I had no hesitation in my mind that Rear Admiral Best would do a thorough job and I know, even before I can read it, that it would take us into areas beyond just the death because I believe it is important for us to understand more [about] why this is happening, rather than just the circumstances of this individual death,” he said.
The Minister further said that he believes that the act aths in the mining industry to zero.
“For the year… we’ve had six deaths, including this one. Each one is one too many and the GGMC, in conjunction with the Ministry, we are working to ensure that we avoid accidents altogether by teaching miners best practices, by being more vigilant with our work and in our work… there is room for improvement all around,” he said. Additionally, Minister Trotman said the Ministry remains committed to supporting the probe into the matter and hopes to engage him after he has submitted his final report. “The real work has to start after we would have gone through the recommendations to see how we can implement them,” he said.
Meanwhile, in an effort to bring some context to the report, Advisor Best said that this preliminary report has examined the regulators in the industry and a probe into other aspects of his mandate, starting with the operators, will begin today. “We want to be as thorough as we can and, so far, we have had good cooperation at the upper management level, but it was quite difficult getting the evidence from the mines officers in the field. I think that it was quite tough and we’ll have to go back there again and meet with some rangers to try to understand exactly what occurred,” he said.
The final report of the CoI is due on Monday, November 21. On Tuesday, October 18, 2016, Best was sworn-in by Chief Magistrate Ann McLennan, at the Georgetown Magistrates’ Courts, to lead a probe into the incident that resulted in the death of 33-year-old miner Keon Wilson on October 8, 2016.
