Latest update May 12th, 2024 12:59 AM
Oct 12, 2013 News
By: Javone Vickerie
Fire of unknown origin yesterday ripped through the bond of a city business and a two storey house at Ogle, East Coast Demerara, leaving a family of four homeless and dozens of employees displaced.
The bond belonging to Beepat Trading was completely razed as well as an adjacent house.
Sheila Singh, a neighbour who witnessed the fire told Kaieteur News that about 11:00 am yesterday she was in her yard when she was alerted by the smell of “rubber burning”.
“I thought it was something in me house burning so the thing had me running up and down fuh see if is something in me house but then, when I look outside me ain’t see nothing,” the neighbour said.
The woman said that she then looked over the road and was startled by a bright spark which came from the electrical cable attached to the roof of the burnt building. .
“About 10 minutes after, all I hear is a big explosion and a set of black smoke coming from the center of the building; so I start shout out fire! And dem people from the area start run out,” Singh recalled.
The woman added that the employees of the bond then quickly exited the already burning building while residents began soaking nearby houses to prevent them from catching ablaze.
Another neighbour said that he was at work at the Ogle International Airport when he saw the thick black smoke in the sky.
The man added that when he arrived home he saw the entire bond on fire. He told Kaieteur News that no one was at home at the burnt house at the time of the fire.
Residents told this publication that the fire service arrived promptly but had to resort to a canal a short distance away.
When Kaieteur News arrived on the scene yesterday, combustible items were exploding and sending material flying in the air.
While the fire attendants tried to control the blaze, the roof of a house next door became engulfed. This sent another set of fire fighters scurrying to save that house. They failed.
Because of the heavy grilled doors and windows, the fire quickly spread to the entire wooden house.
When the occupants of the lot 16 Old Road, Ogle home arrived on the scene a little while later, they stood quietly with tears in their eyes, watching their home go up in flames. The tenants explained to this publication that they were unable to save anything.
However, representatives from Beepat declined to speak to members of the media.
Meanwhile, Operations Manager of the Guyana Fire Service Joseph McDonald told Kaieteur News that three attendants were dispatched promptly to the fire scene but because of the heavily grilled security on the bond and the thick smoke, fire fighters were unable to take early control of the building.
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