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Hope of finding missing tourist alive dwindles
Missing: Gyaneshwarie Laleta Sivanand
Hope of finding Gyaneshwarie Laleta Sivanand alive has almost faded, after a team from the Special Forces of the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) completed a search of the gorge below Kaieteur Falls, but came up empty-handed.
Sivanand, a female tourist, disappeared while on a tour of the world famous Kaieteur Falls. Officials now believe that after a week of searching the area, it will be a miracle if she is found alive.
“We do not have any evidence that she fell off or plunged over the falls. And given the wide area that was covered during the search, there is no sign of her even being in the area,” a GDF official told this newspaper.
“It is very hard for anyone to survive in those conditions near the falls, let alone a woman,” the official added.
The GDF search of the gorge ended on Saturday. The Ministry of the Presidency in a statement later that day said that the search was slow, due to the dangerous and extremely rugged terrain in the gorge below Kaieteur Falls.
Reports are that all of the trails in the Park were searched. Binoculars were also used to view the area below the falls and along the sides of the gorge. However, there is still no trace of the woman.
A release stated, “The Department of Natural Resources and Environment (DNRE) wishes to inform the general public that the Kaieteur National Park remains closed until further notice, as the investigation that is being led by the Guyana Police Force (GPF), with assistance from other agencies continues. A review of the Park’s operation protocols is ongoing to ensure the continued safety of visitors to this magnificent site.”
Sivanand was among a group of tourists to the Kaieteur Falls on Tuesday last. The woman, who was employed in the field of Human Resources, is a former employee of Laparkan and Singer’s.
Reports are that the woman was seen crying and talking on her phone while the airplane was heading to the tourist destination.
When the aircraft landed at the falls, the woman appeared in better spirits. Sivanand was discovered missing when the tour guide was distributing chits to the passengers for snacks, at the Kaieteur airstrip before they boarded the aircraft back to Ogle.
One of her colleagues on the trip said that the missing woman was with the party when it was returning along the trail from the falls.
She said that the woman lagged behind and when they urged her to walk up she said that she knew the place and that she had been there several times before.
She spoke of being with a British team that discovered some caves in the Kaieteur Falls area a few years ago. That has been found to be not true.
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