12 hours ago
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KEVON FELMINE
Senior Reporter
Legal action is advancing against Paria Fuel Trading Company and Land and Marine Contracting Services (LMCS), despite the Government’s $1 million ex gratia payment to four families of the Paria diving tragedy, with some relatives pursuing further compensation.
Saira Lakhan, one of the attorneys representing the families of Fyzal Kurban and Christopher Henry, filed negligence claims in the High Court against both companies in February.
The matters are before Justices Christopher Sieuchand and Marcia Ayers-Caesar.
Lakhan said the next step is for Paria and LMCS to file their defences, after which hearing dates will be set. Claimants may apply for judgment in default if no defences are filed, although Paria has already retained legal representation. Attorneys said the other family also has legal representation and is pursuing similar claims.
Lakhan stressed the lawsuits are separate from the Government’s ex gratia payments, noting there was no condition that any compensation awarded through the High Court would be subject to deductions.
“It was really just a payment in good faith from the State to the family based on the circumstances in this particular case,” she said.
On January 22, lone survivor Christopher Boodram and the families of Rishi Nagessar and Fyzal Kurban received ex gratia payments from Prime Minister Kamla Persad-Bissessar at the Diplomatic Centre, St Ann’s. Yusuf Henry’s family did not receive the grant, as Lakhan said they are still in the process of securing letters of administration.
In January, Minister of Energy and Energy Industries Dr Roodal Moonilal said there was no legal impediment preventing the State from making payments to families who had already received them. However, issues involving insurance claims for the relatives of Kazim Ali Jr and Henry remain ongoing with Paria, and payments are expected once those matters are resolved.
The Paria diving tragedy unfolded on February 25, 2022, in the Pointe-à-Pierre harbour, when five LMCS divers contracted to perform maintenance work on Paria’s Berth 6 were pulled into a 30-inch pipeline during a Differential Pressure (Delta P) event. Only one diver, Boodram, escaped, while Kurban, Henry, Ali Jr, and Nagessar died. Their bodies were flushed out of the pipe days later. The incident sparked national outrage, particularly over the absence of an immediate underwater rescue attempt despite a report that the men were alive following the incident.
A government-appointed Commission of Enquiry later found the tragedy resulted from gross negligence and recommended charges of corporate manslaughter. The matter remains before the courts, with Boodram pursuing claims for long-term medical issues and families of the deceased seeking compensation.
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