Survivor wants Paria to pay medical bills, give information on diving tragedy

ATTORNEYS for surviving LMCS diver Christopher Boodram and Vanessa Kussie, the widow of his colleague Rishi Nagassar, have written to the CEO of Paria Fuel Trading Company demanding information about the tragedy in which four men died at its Pointe-a-Pierre facility on February 25.

On February 25, five divers, all employees of LMCS of Tarouba Road, Marabella, were working on a pipeline on Berth 6 when they were sucked into it.

Boodram was the sole survivor. Those who died were Nagassar, Kazim Jeremiah Ali, Yusuf Henry, and Fyzal Kurban. The first three bodies were recovered around 6 pm on February 28, and Nagassar’s body was found at 12.35 am on March 3.

Autopsies on the bodies of Henry and Kurban, at the Forensic Science Centre, showed they drowned. The findings of further autopsies by Dr Hubert Daisley have not been made public so far.

On Tuesday, attorney Che Dindial, of Freedom House Chambers, led by Senior Counsel Anand Ramlogan, wrote to Paria’s CEO with a freedom of information request for a list of documents and other material, “given the unhelpful attitude of Paria.”

The attorneys also want to know if Paria will pay Boodram’s medical expenses and for the advice of independent experts.

The attorneys for the two asked for 23 items, in total, relating to camera footage of inside the pipeline which was shared on social media; the contract between LMCS and Paria; the permit for the job; footage from the Go-Pro camera belonging to one of the divers; the names of those who prohibited the divers’ rescue; footage from the hyperbaric chamber from the time the divers entered it; and everyone who was present at Berths 5 and 6 from the time the incident happened on February 25 until the bodies of the four divers were recovered.

In the letter, Dindial said the traumatic ordeal of “this life-threatening experience” has left Boodram and Kussie “in a state of unimaginable grief and distress.”

“Mr Boodram has lost four colleagues, with whom he shared an extremely close bond. Indeed, they were personal friends and in some cases, lived like brothers.

“We have been instructed to convey our clients’ continuing dismay, shock and disappointment over the conduct of Paria throughout this terrifying ordeal, and more importantly, in the aftermath of same,” the attorney said.

He also said Boodram was in “dire need of medical attention that he cannot afford.

“Naturally, he prefers to remain with his present doctors and does not wish for Paria to handpick his doctors for him.

“In this vein, we reject any suggestion/proposal by Paria that it will only assist if he allows the company to dictate which doctor he should seek medical attention from.”

The attorney asked if Paria would be prepared to pay Boodram’s expenses, pointing out that the company said it would be willing to pay for such services.

“We expect a favourable response as it would be highly unreasonable for Paria to say that it is only willing to pay for his medical expenses if it can select his doctors for him.”

Dindial also served notice that Boodram and Kussie intended to retain independent international experts for provisional advice and expert evidence. This, he said, was a significant expenditure which their clients could ill afford.

“We therefore further wish to inquire whether Paria will be prepared to pay for the cost of hiring an independent expert selected by our client so that they can have an independent expert report prepared to enable them to meaningfully contribute to the various investigations and seek their own interest. We are certain that you would agree that it would add insult to deadly injury if no provision is made for our clients to be able to have the benefit of independent expert advice in this matter.

The attorney also complained of the leaking of the video to “selected media houses and social media journalists." He described this as a “callous, wicked and malicious attempt to justify its irrational decision to prevent the rescue divers from saving the remaining four divers, whom we now know were very much alive in air pockets, beating the inside of the pipe, hoping to be rescued.”

Dindial said the leaked video did not say what section of the pipeline the camera had covered and was “plainly an attempt to influence and spin the narrative away from Paria’s negligent decision to prevent the rescue mission by creating the false impression that it was virtually impossible for anyone who was sucked into the pipeline to survive.”

He also pointed out the video was leaked at a time when the Prime Minister had announced a commission of enquiry and was “evidence of how desperate Paria is and the lengths to which it would go to exculpate itself.”

He added, “This footage (if genuine), is material evidence that is plainly relevant to the investigation undertaken by OSHA and the Commission of Inquiry.

“We are instructed that one of the divers had a Go Pro underwater camera inside the pipeline which recorded them alive in the air pocket, praying and comforting each other whilst they were waiting to be rescued. This Go Pro camera would have been recovered by Paria when the pipeline was flushed out and it is a pity that the footage from this camera was not leaked instead.”

Dindial said it was unfortunate Paria appeared not to want to disclose information and records to the divers’ families.

“Is it that Paria does not think that the families would equally want access to the relevant records pertaining to the death of their loved ones? What message does Paria think it is sending when it has never inquired of the families about what information they require but promises in the media, to disclose all the relevant records to the commission of enquiry?

“In the circumstances, we seek your undertaking to make full and frank disclosure to disclose any and all information pertinent to this tragedy to the legal representatives of the victim’s families.”

Dindial’s letter said the incident has since been described as “the worst industrial accident in our nation for nearly 40 years.

“It has attracted both regional and international attention. Concerned family members, including our client Ms Kussie, were forced to camp out at a bus shed outside Paria’s compound while they anxiously awaited the news about the fate of their loved ones." He said this showed Paria was “content to ignore their grief and relegate them to the periphery without any concern for their pain and suffering...

“Whilst Paria’s board of directors and executive management pontificated like armchair critics, comfortably ensconced in their air-conditioned board rooms with refreshments, food and drink, the families were marginalised and left in the sweltering heat, without so much as a Chubby or bottle of water, far less toilet facilities."

He also said, “There was extremely limited communication via a WhatsApp group which could be reasonably described as insensitive and inconsiderate.

Dindial said the families had to resort to social media to vent their frustrations, while Paria’s press releases were described as being “aloof,” which underscored its “detachment” from the families.

The attorney accused Paria of failing to engage in any meaningful consultation or discussion with the divers’ families.

“As the national outrage over Paria’s inaction intensified, the company appeared to have dug its heels even deeper into the quicksand of procrastination whilst it engaged in analysis paralysis,” he added.

Dindial argud that “precious time was lost with no clear plan and sadly, even though Mr Boodram was rescued a mere three hours after the incident, Paria blocked further rescue attempts.

“The families learned about Paria’s decision when they saw a press release in the media and when the frustrated rescue divers protested on social media.”

As he asked for all of Paria’s press releases, including those that were amended, Dindial said originally the company claimed the OSH Authority supported the decision to abort any rescue mission. However, he said since then, OSHA has denied giving support to “such a deadly decision.”

Dindial insisted, “This decision led to the untimely and avoidable death of the remaining divers including our client’s common-law husband, who were alive in air pockets inside the pipeline awaiting help.”

The nine-page letter further critised Paria’s conduct after the death of the four divers.

“Despite mounting public criticism and unanimous condemnation of Paria’s callous treatment of the bereaved families, Paria has amazingly continued to operate in the same high-handed manner.”

Dindial said the families have been given no support and “poor defenceless mothers are left to care for their children without knowing where their next meal is coming from.

“No form of financial assistance has been offered to our clients.”

Dindial said Boodram had contracted covid19 and was unable to work in December and January, while Kussie had three children.

The freedom of information request asked for the information or a response in seven days instead of the 30-day limit set by law because of the urgent nature of the matter. Dindial said even if some of the documents are deemed exempt, the legal team still wanted access, as the law provides for it.

‘Our clients therefore expect that there would be full compliance with the FOIA request.

“…Serious injustice has been inflicted upon not only our clients, the lone survivor and one family member of the deceased divers, but also the other families who have lost loved ones as a result of this tragedy. These individuals deserve an explanation regarding the decisions taken to treat with the situation in question.”

On March 8, Dr Rowley announced the establishment of a CoE and two days later Energy Minister Stuart Young announced it will be chaired by former head of Jamaica’s Appeal Court, Justice Cecil Dennis Morrison, SC.

Local subsea specialist Gregory Wilson will also be on the commission. The Government is yet to announce the third member or the expected date when it will begin public hearings.

Former attorney general Ramesh Lawrence Maharaj, SC, is lead counsel for the commission.