Response team was adequate, effective and ‘did well’ given circumstances – Mahdia COI hears

As public hearings of the Presidential Commission of Inquiry (COI) into the tragedy at the Mahdia dormitory get underway, the commission was informed that the response team organised on the night of the tragedy did its best during the difficult situation.

Providing his testimony on Friday, the Head of General Surgery at the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC), Dr Shilindra Rajkumar recounted his overall assessment of the medical team that was deployed to deal with the tragic experience on the night in question.

“I think they were overwhelmed. It was a lot more than they were accustomed to, more than they were prepared for. But I must say that, with them being limited in their numbers and their resources, they did a pretty good job in dealing with the situation. It was a difficult situation, but I think they did well. They did the best they could with what they had,” he said.

When asked whether a larger assembly of medical reinforcements would have reduced the mortality rate, Dr Rajkumar said despite being overwhelmed by the magnitude of the circumstances, the response team was adequate and effective.

“To be honest, the persons who died, died in the fire. More medical personnel could not have helped here, and of the patients who made it to the hospital, they all made it home save for one person who died. So, in total, if we were to go back to numbers, there were about 15 patients who needed hospital care, and there were 50 students in total who actually were reviewed, and of that number, only one person died. That person was intubated and brought out on the first flight. So, I think that a lot of effort was made to provide much-needed help,” Dr Rajkumar explained.

He believes that more medical help would not have reduced the mortality rate, but help to ease the burden on persons there.

“The staff were overwhelmed; they were asked to work in shifts. They worked 24 hours without sleep, and that is where additional help would have benefitted. But to say that it would have saved more lives? I think that, with that one life we would have lost, there was nothing more we could have done,” he underscored.

Also providing testimony during the morning session was the Director of Operations at Roraima Airways, Captain Learie Barclay, who noted that he received a call just after midnight to lend his assistance in performing night medevacs.

Highlighting the complicatedness of this task, especially given the limited visibility, he recalled that a rudimentary portable lighting system was implemented to make it easier for pilots to identify the runway.

On May 21, the country was plunged into a state of mourning as a deadly fire ripped through the girls’ dormitory of the Mahdia Secondary School, claiming the lives of twenty children who hailed from various Amerindian communities.

The response saw a convergence of medical personnel, government officials, members of the joint services, and aviation personnel working assiduously to provide assistance.

The commission of inquiry into the events surrounding this tragedy was established in August and is headed by Major General (Ret’d) Joseph Singh as Chairman, along with Dr Kim Kyte-Thomas, and Derrick John.