No-go areas at Kaieteur Falls following second suicide

Last Updated on Monday, 23 November 2015, 11:50 by GxMedia

Visitors to the Kaieteur National Park will be blocked from going to certain areas near the Falls, in the wake of a second suicide in as many months, authorities announced Sunday.

“Specifically, visitors will no longer be able to access the edge of the Falls or the area where the visitor jumped. These restrictions will remain in place until further notice,” said the Ministry of Tourism in a statement.

The Ministry of Tourism appealed to visitors to comply with the instructions about “restricted access to various points” when the Kaieteur National reopens. “The Ministry of Tourism looks forward to the cooperation of  the general public with the new restrictions, as we seek permanent solutions to address this disturbing trend of misusing the Falls.”

Meanwhile, police and park rangers were waiting on the body of Roshinie Pagwah to become visible so that Guyana Defence Force soldiers could help in recovering it from the gorge. “The pool at the base of the Falls is being monitored for signs of the visitor, while preparations have commenced to secure and extract the body, once it becomes visible. This operation will be led by Special Forces of the Guyana Defence Force, due to the dangerous and extremely rugged terrain below the Falls.”

The 23-year old woman fled from park rangers Saturday on Saturday, November 21, 2015 and jumped off the falls, a world renowned tourist attraction.

Pagwah was part a group that had just finished their tour of the Falls, and was being led back to her aircraft, when she turned and sprinted back towards the Falls, jumping into the gorge.

Updates on the recovery efforts and operations at the Park will continue to be provided as they become available. 

Back in September, Gyaneshwarie ‘Lalita’ Sivanand took her own life by jumping over the falls into the gorge. Her body was recovered almost one week later.