The son of one of the victims who died from a mystery illness at Wakapao two weeks ago has been discharged from the Intensive Care Unit of the Georgetown Public Hospital after spending about two weeks at the institution.
Gavin Thomas, 30, of Wakapao Village in Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam), was discharged on Friday last.
A relative who spoke to Guyana Times on Tuesday said that she is happy that his condition is much better although he remains a bit weak.
“We are thanking the father that he is home and that he pulled through because we have been very worried since the death of his father and sister. He is recovering well,” she said.
He was the last of four family members that were hospitalised with the illness to be discharged. Three others were discharged earlier last week.
Selena Thomas and her father, Edward Richards, were laid to rest on Tuesday last at Wakapao during an emotional funeral service where scores of persons from their village gathered to get a glimpse of their remains.
Relatives had said that they are trying to come to grips with what transpired. “We are still trying to deal with the whole situation. Everything happened so fast. Just like that, we lost two of our family together it’s really rough. They were both healthy and jovial,” the relative had said.
She stated that the family has made no alternative arrangements regarding what will be done with their farm, as they insisted that no pesticides were used.
“They haven’t decided yet what they will do about their crops and so on, but they maintained that they never used any pesticides or chemicals or anything like that,” she said.
The police have since visited the community and questioned several residents. However, no further information was obtained. Efforts by this publication on Tuesday to obtain an update from the police on the status of the investigation were unsuccessful.
The entire family became ill after consuming cassava bread on June 10. It was also reported that two dogs were also fed the cassava bread and subsequently died. They were reportedly being treated for cyanide poisoning. However, post-mortem examinations conducted on both Richards and Thomas were inconclusive. Samples were sent overseas for further testing.
Meanwhile, indigenous leaders have come out to voice their concerns over this issue. They called for a full investigation into the matter and refuted the claims of cyanide poisoning reported to relatives by medical officials.
