Karasabai hostel fire: 4 teens for court this week

The four male teenagers who have confessed to setting the St Angela’s Girls’ Hostel at Karasabai, Region Nine (Upper Takutu-Upper Essequibo) on fire last week, are expected to be charged and placed before the court this week.
This is according to Crime Chief Wendell Blanhum, who told Guyana Times on Sunday that the arraignment will be done “early” in the week.
Nearly two weeks after a deadly inferno had destroyed the Mahdia Secondary School’s female dormitory and claimed the lives of 20 children, a fire broke out at the girls’ hostel in Karasabai in the wee hours of Thursday, June 1, 2023.
According to the Guyana Police Force, all 19 children housed at the hostel safely evacuated the building. Initial investigations revealed that the hostel was occupied by 19 students between the ages of 11 and 16 years.

The fire occurred between 02:30h and 03:00h, leading Karasabai Police Station authorities and villagers to immediately form a bucket brigade. While firefighters from Lethem and Georgetown were dispatched to aid in quelling its impact, the inferno eventually destroyed much of the building and its contents before it was put out.
The hostel was built and managed by the Catholic Church through a self-help initiative, and it aimed to ease the burden on students living with guardians in the village. Several students who occupied the hostel hailed from far-flung communities within the district.
Based on reports, the four male students had threatened to set fire to the building after they were chased from the premises by the caretaker. Making good on their promise, the hostel was set alight early on Thursday.
The four alleged suspects were contacted and interviewed by the Police in the presence of the Commander of Region Nine, the Regional Education Officer of Region Nine, and their parents, during which they all confessed to the planning and execution of the crime. They had been in Police custody since.
This incident comes on the heels of the tragic deaths of nineteen female students and a five-year-old boy following the May 21 fire that engulfed the Mahdia Secondary School girls’ dormitory in Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni).
A fifteen-year-old student was last Monday remanded to the Juvenile Holding Centre for her alleged involvement in starting this fire. This case has been adjourned until July 4.
Initial reports indicated that this student had her cell phone confiscated, and was previously suspended for engaging in activities contrary to the rules of the institution, after which she allegedly threatened to cause “trouble” during an argument with the administrators.