Noting that majority of marine-related fatalities occur in the rural regions of the country, the Maritime Administration Department (MARAD) says Guyana has seen a significant decrease in these types of deaths within the last five years.
In 2017, Guyana had recorded 18 maritime deaths – four from accidents and 14 stemming from other incidents.
In 2018, 23 deaths were registered – five from accidents, two from other incidents and 16 as a result of piracy.
In 2019, 11 deaths were recorded all occurring from various incidents. For 2020, eight deaths were recorded all as a result of accidents, while in 2021, Guyana recorded six deaths – two from accidents and four from other incidents.
During a recent exclusive interview with this publication, Director General of MARAD Stephen Thomas pointed out that a number of these accidents and incidents occurred in the rural areas of Guyana.
“A lot of them occurring in the rivers of rural areas, like in the North West, the mining areas, in the Mazaruni, Cuyuni and those places which are very treacherous…,” he explained.
Despite the decrease in the maritime fatalities, the MARAD Head contended that any loss of life is unfortunate.
As such, he said the Department is hoping that in the near future the number of fatalities can be reduced to zero.
