Guyana

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Guyana Wants to Bring Tourists to Jonestown

Opponents say 'ghoulish' plan would disrespect victims

(Newser) - Guyana is revisiting a dark history nearly a half-century after the Rev. Jim Jones and more than 900 of his followers died in a 1978 mass suicide-murder in the rural interior of the South American country. A government-backed tour operator wants to open the former commune now shrouded by lush...

Authorities: Teen Upset Over Phone Set Deadly Dorm Fire

19 victims at boarding school in Mahdia, Guyana, had been locked in for the night by house mother

(Newser) - Investigators in Guyana believe a fire that killed 19 people, mostly girls, trapped in a school dormitory was deliberately set by a student who was upset that her mobile phone had been confiscated, a top official said Tuesday. The suspect in the fire late Sunday, who's among the injured,...

One of South America's Poorest Countries Has Struck Oil

Find excites but worries Guyana

(Newser) - Guyana has long been one of the hemisphere's poorest places, a sparsely populated nation on South America's northern shoulder that relies heavily on exports of sugar, rice, and gold. But these days, there's a surge of excitement about an anticipated windfall from major oil-and-gas deposits found in...

Jimmy Carter Cuts Trip, 'Not Feeling Well'

90-year-old former president was on 39th election observation in Guyana

(Newser) - Carter Center officials say former President Jimmy Carter has cut short an election observation visit in Guyana due to health reasons. Today's statement from the Center says the 90-year-old ex-president is returning to Atlanta. It did not disclose specifics, only saying Carter was "not feeling well." The...

Scientist Stumbles Upon Spider as Big as a Puppy

Goliath birdeater has 2-inch fangs

(Newser) - Strolling through a Guyana rainforest one night, a scientist heard some rustling and thought he'd encountered a furry mammal. Well, he was right about the furry part. The creature was actually a Goliath birdeater spider, LiveScience reports—the world's biggest type of spider, according to the Guinness Book ...

This Will Be the Priciest Object Ever Sold*

*By size and weight

(Newser) - A stamp, created by a newspaper publisher when a British colony ran out of proper stamps in 1856, "will be by size and weight simply the most expensive object ever sold in history." The British Guiana One-Cent Black on Magenta stamp will sell at Sotheby's on June...

Flight From JFK Crashes: All 163 Survive

Plane overshoots runway in Guyana

(Newser) - You probably wouldn't guess as much from the photos, but all 163 people aboard a plane from JFK to Guyana survived a disastrous landing. Dozens of people required medical attention, however, including four with serious injuries, reports AP . After the plane touched down on a rainy runway during the...

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