Parents of two girls who survived a dorm fire that killed 20 in Guyana sue the government

By BERT WILKINSON
Associated Press

GEORGETOWN, Guyana (AP) — The parents of two teenagers who survived a fire that killed 20 people at a high school dormitory for Indigenous girls last year have sued the government and accused authorities of negligence. The lawsuit that attorneys shared with reporters late Wednesday is seeking more than $50,000 for each of the two unidentified 14-year-old girls. They were rescued by authorities and residents who braved the fire last May at the Mahdia dormitory near the border with Brazil. Investigators have said the fire was deliberately set by a student who was upset that her mobile phone was confiscated.