Eight Guyanese sue Caribbean Airlines for 2011 crash

Last Updated on Saturday, 26 December 2015, 21:01 by GxMedia

Eight passengers of the Caribbean Airlines plane that crashed at the Cheddi Jagan International Airport (CJIA) two years ago are suing the airline for more than GUY$8 million each.

Court papers filed by their attorneys, Sase Gunraj and Jaya Singh, on July 26, 2013 state that they are each claiming damages in excess of GUY$1 million for personal injuries, loss and damage suffered in the crash on July 30,2011.

They are accusing the Trinidad and Tobago-headquartered carrier of negligent operation of Caribbean Airlines Flight # BW523, an aircraft owned, leased, operated, managed, maintained and/or controlled by the defendant, its agents and/or servants.

They want interest, costs and such further or other order that the court may deem fit.

They are Ernest Scott of 89 Andries Noble Avenue, East Coast Demerara; Abdool Latiff of 120 Ocean View Uitvlugt, West Coast Demerara; Maylene Persaud of 57 Lime Street, Werk-en-Rust, Georgetown; nine-year old Chelsea Persaud and six-year old Crystal Persaud, their mother Shanti Persaud- all of 85 William Street, Campbellville, Georgetown- and United States-based Rajendra Persaud and Prampatie Persaud.

Caribbean Airlines has 10 days within which to enter an appearance and the plaintiffs have 14 days to file the details of their claims.

Local and foreign investigators have attributed the mishap to a long landing of the Boeing 737-800. The plane broke in half when it overshot the 7,400-foot runway and partly fell over a 200 foot deep ravine.

Guyanese, United States and Caribbean investigators are yet to issue their final report on the accident.

One passenger, Noel Elliot, broke and eventually lost one of his legs. Trinidad and Tobago Prime Minister, Kamla Persad-Bissessar had been visited in the High Dependency Unit (HDU) of the Georgetown Public Hospital Corporation (GPHC) she had also visited the crash site and held talks with local officials.