In the wake of the tragic fire at the female dormitory of the Mahdia Secondary School in Region Eight, the Guyana Fire Service has been installing fire alert and prevention systems at dorms across the country.
This is according to Education Minister Priya Manickchand who engaged reporters on Tuesday at her Brickdam, Georgetown, office.
The Education Minister said officers from the Guyana Fire Service visited several dorms to engage in training sessions and to install various firefighting and alter systems.
The systems installed include equipment such as fire extinguishers.
While these measures are being taken, the minister noted that education officers are working alongside officials from the Fire Service and Ministry of Home Affairs.
“… what we want to do is check that with our people on the ground and make sure that these are in the correct places,” Manickchand said on Tuesday.
Earlier in June, weeks after the devastating fire, Manickchand had told reporters that government is now moving to implement several measures across all schools and dorms to make them safer.
She did not provide details on exactly what these measures are but assured persons that the measures being pursued would help to make these facilities safer for children. She also reminded reporters that there are provisions in the 2023 budget for five dorms in Regions 1, 7, and 9 to be fixed.
Even though the fire was deliberately set by another student, the government came in for heavy criticism for not having any safety measures in place at the dorms.
It was subsequently revealed by the Stabroek News that a United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF) assessment of all 24 school dormitories across the country last year highlighted a series of deficiencies to the Ministry of Education.
