Nov 5, 2026
3 min read
A 38-year-old woman who gave birth aboard the MV Ma Lisha while travelling to the North West District has been discharged from hospital, while her newborn son remains under observation for further medical examinations.
Both mother and child are doing well following the unexpected delivery at sea, which occurred while the vessel was about 22 nautical miles offshore, near Shell Beach.
Pauline Cyrus, who was approximately 36 weeks pregnant, was travelling to Kumaka to visit her sick mother when she began experiencing labour pains.
With no doctor, nurse or other medical professional aboard the vessel, fellow passengers and crew members stepped in to assist as her condition worsened.
Speaking with Ignite News, Cyrus recalled waking up to intense pain before checking herself and realising that she was already in labour.
“When me wake up this pain like this pain overhurt and like me just gone in the bathroom and me check myself and this pain did getting hot already on me,” she recounted.
The captain and crew helped move her upstairs to a room aboard the vessel, where she delivered a baby boy at approximately 1:51 a.m.
Two female passengers assisted with cleaning Cyrus after the delivery, while another passenger helped with the newborn.
“The two lady them what help me them clean me, clean the blood like. Them pack everything, nasty thing inside, inside in a bag and throw way and then the girl Shanaz, she cut the baby navel and wipe he skin,” she recalled.
However, the situation remained critical after the birth, as the newborn initially struggled to breathe.
“He take lil long for like haul he breath,” Cyrus said.
Cyrus also developed a fever following the delivery and was eventually carried off the vessel on a stretcher.
A Coast Guard team commanded by Petty Officer Wendell Walcott arrived at approximately 6:20 a.m., more than four hours after the birth, and transferred the mother and newborn to a Coast Guard vessel.
They were subsequently transported to Mabaruma Hospital for medical attention and post-natal care.
While Cyrus has since been discharged, her baby remains at the hospital for further examinations. Both are reported to be doing well.
The incident has highlighted the challenges of responding to medical emergencies aboard passenger vessels serving remote communities, where access to immediate medical assistance can be limited.
Under Guyana's Shipping Act, certain ships carrying at least 100 people are required to have a qualified medical practitioner aboard. However, that requirement does not automatically extend to every domestic passenger ferry.
