Guyana’s Minister of Home Affairs, Robeson Benn said the dilapidated section of the Stabroek Market wharf “was and still is an accident waiting to happen”.
Speaking with reporters following today’s partial collapse of the roof, Benn said the area is a threat to public safety.
He noted the area was previously cordoned off from public access by the Georgetown City Council but those measures were neither followed nor enforced and people continued using the area.
Benn made a public plea to the City Council, which is under opposition control, to close the area and work with the government to rebuild the structure.
Meanwhile, Minister of Local Government and Regional Development, Sonia Parag, said the roof collapse came as no surprise her as she recently raised concerns about the structure to the mayor and City Council during a recent tour.
“I was here two weeks ago, and I noted and expressed publicly the dangers as people were traversing on that wharf at the time and I know that it was a wharf that was condemned,” she said.
“People brought it to my attention that it was potentially dangerous. So today we saw the effects of that.”
Minister within the Ministry of Public Works, Deodat Indar, said work will begin shortly to remove the debris as it poses a fire hazard.
Indar noted cleanup work will have to be done mostly by hand due to the possibility that the weight of heavy equipment could trigger another collapse.
Georgetown Mayor Alfred Mentore said a joint collaborative team will be established to work with the government to find a solution to problems facing the Stabroek Market.
He said issues at the market are a “national issue” as it will require all sectors to come together to work hand in hand.
The mayor said unsafe areas of the market will be cordoned off and the Guyana Police Force will be engaged to keep the public away.
