Latest update March 29th, 2024 12:59 AM
Jun 03, 2013 News
Fire struck with devastating consequences on Saturday night, leaving seven members of a Triumph, East Coast Demerara family homeless. The blaze, which started around 19:15 hours completely destroyed the two flat building located at 30 Surat Drive, Triumph.
Kaieteur News understands that a male occupant of the house suffered burns about his body when he tried to salvage some items from the burning building. Fortunately the three children who were in the house with him at the time of the fire made it to safety before the house was quickly engulfed in flames.
The occupants are convinced that the fire was electrical in origin because it occurred seconds after power was restored to the community.
Neighbours, including worshippers at the next door Triumph Assembly of God church, heard a loud sound just after the electricity returned before seeing fire coming from inside the property.
“There were two blackouts, and when the lights came on the second time, the church people hear the big ‘boom!’ by the time they came outside, the top flat was already on fire,” a neigbour told this newspaper.
When Kaieteur News arrived on the scene, a female occupant of the house was being consoled by relatives and was too distraught to speak. Onel Profitt, who resides elsewhere, told this newspaper that her sister, who lived in the house, left to go and plait her hair, leaving the three children and their uncle at home.
She said that she received a call from another relative who informed her that the house was on fire.
But when they arrived at the house it was almost destroyed. She explained that the fire started in the upper flat of the house although she could not say exactly where.
“When they (relatives) came they saw the wire sparking,” she added.
According to Profitt, her brother was lucky not to have suffered a worse fate than minor burns to his back.
“After he brought the kids out, he went back in and then like something fell on him,” she said. Kaieteur News understands that the owner of the house who resides overseas only purchased it three years ago.
“We only collected the transport for the house the other day,” Onel Profitt explained. Residents were critical of the Guyana Fire Service, who they said arrived at the scene without adequate water. The firefighters were forced to seek an alternative source of water which presented some challenge, since the nearby trench is weed infested.
Meanwhile, although the nearby church suffered some amount of damage as a result of the fire it did not prevent worshippers from partaking in their Sunday service.
THIS IDIOT TELLING GUYANA WE HAVE NO SAY IN THE 50% PROFIT SHARING AGREEMENT WE HAVE WITH EXXON.
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