More than two months after Humphrey’s building on Main and Holmes streets was destroyed by fire, the Guyana Fire Service is yet to determine its cause, but Chief Fire Officer Marlon Gentle said the investigation is nearing conclusion.
“We have a fair idea as to what happened but I can’t disclose this right now,” Gentle told Stabroek News yesterday when contacted.
He said the fire service has been working on the investigation and there is need to confirm a few issues before a determination of the cause of the fire is made known.
The early morning fire on January 10 last completely destroyed the building which had housed the Frandec Travel Service for many years. The building also housed the LIAT office, Dagron’s Travel Service and Humphrey’s Hardware Store.
Residents had told Stabroek News that they heard two thunderous explosions at around 2 am and when they rushed out they saw a car departing the scene. Flames, they said quickly engulfed the old wooden building. The fire service responded fairly quickly but could not do much as the fire had already spread.
The three-storey building, which was said to be around 100 years old, was owned by HG Humphrey and Frandec Travel Services under the company H&F Inc.
Contacted yesterday, Kathryn Eytle-Mc Lean, Chief Executive Officer of Frandec and a Director on the board of H&F Inc, told Staboek News that the fire service was yet to inform them about the cause of the fire. Asked if she was concerned that the investigation has taken this long Eytle-McLean said, “Yes, but I am taking it easy.” She said that another director on the H&F Inc board has been keeping in touch with the fire service.
Meanwhile, she said business for Frandec since has been “wonderful”, adding that they could not have asked “for better.” The travel agency is now located at the corner of Quamina and Carmichael streets in the old Esso building. On the morning of the fire, Eytle-McLean had told Stabroek News that the security guard on duty had reported that he saw a bright light in the top flat and then he heard what sounded like a loud explosion and the fire started. She had stated that the top flat was unoccupied at the time.
The woman also said that residents of the area reported that they saw a white car circling the area just before the fire and just after the explosion they saw the car driving away.
Residents also reported to Stabroek News that they had seen the car driving off after they heard what sounded like two loud explosions.
