Mahdia tragedy: Families now preparing to lay loved ones to rest

The dust has not yet settled as Guyana comes to grip with the Mahdia dormitory fire, and families are now facing the heart-wrenching duty of preparing to lay their loved ones to rest.
On Friday, the bodies of 13 of the 19 youths who died in the fatal fire at the female dorm, were positively identified. This meant they could now be released by the Government to their respective families for funeral arrangements.
Bibi Rita Fiona Jeffrey was one of these persons whose remains underwent DNA analysis. As her sister, Rihanna Jeffrey spoke with Guyana Times on Saturday, she was busy making arrangements for the funeral. The young girl’s body would be transported to Karisparu, her home village in Region Eight (Potaro-Siparuni), where relatives and friends could say their final goodbyes.
“The body has been positively identified and we are now preparing for the funeral. The funeral should be on Monday. We have already paid for the coffin and so forth, and we are preparing the other things,” a distraught Jeffrey relayed.

While the funeral arrangements are set, this could be hindered by the weather conditions, she added. Prior to this, the family was clinging on to hope that she might be alive since she was initially unaccounted for.
This publication understands that the bodies of two remaining girls from Karisparu: Loreen Evans and Belnisa Evans will also be taken back to the village. The fourth girl, Sabrina John was the first to be buried earlier in the week with an emotional send-off in the community.
The other girls who perished include Lisa Roberts, Tracil Thomas, Delecia Edwards, Lorita Williams, Natalie Bellarmine, Arriana Edwards, Cleoma Simon, Martha Dandrade, Mary Dandrade, Omerfia Edwin, Nickleen Robinson, Sherlyn Bellarmine, Eulander Carter and Andrea Roberts.

Little Adanye Jerome, the five-year-old son of the dorm mother, is also among those who passed. Thus far, he is the only person whose remains will be laid to rest in Georgetown, Guyana Times was informed.
The Mahdia school dormitory housed about 59 students from communities of Karisparu, El Paso, Micobie and Chenapao, Region Eight. According to a Guyana Fire Service, 14 youths died at the scene of the fire, while five died at Mahdia District Hospital after the fire broke out last Sunday evening.
Identification of the bodies via DNA analysis was needed as they were deemed unrecognisable. Families were promised that by Friday, they would receive word on the identification and this was upheld.
The analyses were conducted by Professor and System Chair, Dr Carlos Cordon-Cardo alongside a team of experts at the Pathology Laboratory of New York-based Mount Sinai.
Earlier in the week, samples from forensic specimens taken from the bodies of the female students were obtained by Dr Shubhaker Karra Paul, a specialist pathologist from Barbados. The forensic specimen obtained from the five-year-old male victim was taken by Guyanese pathologist Dr Nehaul Singh. These samples were compared to those taken from the parents and siblings of the children.
On Friday, Prime Minister (retired) Brigadier Mark Phillips underscored that a Commission of Inquiry (CoI) into the dorm fire will help improve dorm facilities across the country. President Irfaan has assured that the Commission will be established soon to determine the cause and circumstances of the incident. (G12)