May 19, 2026
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Religious Affairs (MAEC) confirmed on February 2, 2026, the deaths of the four compatriots who had been reported missing after a pirogue capsized on the Maroni River near Grand-Santi on January 31. This confirmation followed a statement issued the previous day reporting seven passengers on board, six of them Haitians, all teachers.
The identified victims are Wantho Lambert, Mackteison Jérôme, Jean-Ritchy Doirin, and Vercius Rooseley Console. The MAEC “respectfully bows to their memory” and asks the families to “accept its deepest condolences.”
In its initial statement, the ministry indicated that three passengers had been rescued, while the others were then reported missing. It specified that it had instructed the Consulate General of Haiti in Cayenne to maintain “permanent contact” with the Prefecture of French Guiana until the end of the search.
After the recovery of the bodies, the MAEC expressed “the gratitude of the Haitian people and Government to the sub-prefecture of Saint-Laurent du Maroni” for the resources deployed. This tragedy abruptly ends the hope sustained since the initial announcement and once again plunges the Haitian educational community into mourning.
