An 18-year-old labourer employed with a popular West Coast Berbice rice mill was this morning crushed to death by a truck driven by a 24-year-old unlicensed man who was hired as a driver for the company.
Dead: Tularam Harrylall
Dead is Tularam Harrylall of Lot 152 Water Street Bath Settlement, West Coast Berbice.
He was reportedly crushed between a truck and forklift at Hack’s Rice Mill compound, Golden Grove, West Coast Berbice, at about 12:40h.
Guyana Times understands that the young man was crushed by a reversing truck which was driven by a 24-year-old unlicensed man who was employed as a driver with the company.
His cousin, Navindra Pertab, who also works at the rice mill, said he was at the gate when the alarm was raised.
Pertab explained that when he went inside, he first recognised his cousin lying on the ground by the shirt he was wearing.
“I thought is something happen but I didn’t not know is serous. When I go near now I see the whole one side of his face smash in.
“The forklift was about four feet away and the truck had moved and was about ten feet away,” he said.
Pertab said he advised that they do not move the body since he was already dead.
According to the Police, motor lorry GRR 7060 with trailer TWW 1259 driven by a 24-year-old man of D’Edward Village, West Coast Berbice, was reversing. At the time the driver was trying to take the motor lorry with a container into the boiler area for the container to be loaded with bulk rice when an employee alerted him.
He immediately stopped and exited the lorry and went to the back of the vehicle where he saw Harrrylall lying on the ground motionlessly.
He was taken to the Fort Wellington Public Hospital where he was pronounced dead.
Harrylall had been working at the rice mill for the past two years.
According to his cousin, the evening before, they spent a few hours together. Meanwhile, the Labour Ministry has launched an investigation.
Harrylall heaves to mourn his parents and three siblings.
Just over a week ago, a young construction worker lost his life after he fell off a scaffold while working on a building at Montrose, East Coast Demerara.
Dead is 23-year-old Norman Abrams of Lot 804 B Field Sophia, Greater Georgetown.
Reports are that Abrams was employed by a resident of Third Street Montrose.
On December 11, the young man was on a scaffold along with another worker putting on moulding on the outer part of the western roof of a two-storey concrete structure.
While working, the wood on the scaffold turned over and both persons fell off.
Abrams fell in the neighbour’s yard while the other man that was working with him fell under the scaffold.
He was picked up and rushed to the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) by his employer and colleague where he was pronounced dead on arrival.
On November 27, a 16-year-old worker died after he fell from a rice mill shed which is under construction at Vilvoorden, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam).
Dead is Amar Dindyal.
Reports are that Dindyal, the eldest child for his single mother, was employed with a private contractor of Pomona Scheme, Region Two, as a labourer.
The contractor was employed by the owner of the Golden Fleece and Vilvoorden Rice Mill for the construction of a dryer shed at Vilvoorden.
Reports are that at about 15:00h a relative of the teen was contacted to inform the family that Dindyal fell from the shed. The teen, however, succumbed to his injuries while receiving medical attention. An investigation has been launched.
Only on November 24, Guyana Times reported that at least 50 persons have lost their lives since August 2020, according to data released by the Labour Ministry.
Labour Minister Joseph Hamilton in releasing the data had said that this occurrence has to be stopped.
“We have two choices in this matter. Either we continue our merry way, and we prepare to go wake houses and play dominoes and cards, and to attend funerals; or we change. For me, the first option is that I don’t want to shepherd that. I have already had to issue nearly 50 death announcements since I am a Minister. Fifty is too much,” he had said.
The Minister said many times people pay attention to the statistics when their main focus should be the loss a family has to endure.
“For me, it is a person, a father, a husband, a son, and in many cases, persons who are leaving children behind because the breadwinner is gone. That cannot continue.”
Earlier this month, 22-year-old Sudesh Charran, a labourer of Lot 3964 West Minister, West Bank Demerara (WBD), was crushed by a metal lift while working at a supermarket at Vreed-en-Hoop, West Coast Demerara (WCD).
The now dead man was reportedly walking under the metal lift to enter the supermarket when it fell from the upper flat and pinned him to the ground.
As a result, workers rushed to his assistance and used a piece of wood to lift the metal structure from the man’s body. They managed to pull him out but by this time, he was motionless and a large wound was seen to the top of his head.
The Police were summoned, and the injured victim was taken to the West Demerara Regional Hospital (WDRH) where he was pronounced dead on arrival. An investigation is underway. (G4)
