An early morning fire at Robb and King streets, Georgetown yesterday, claimed the lives of two children and left their father hospitalized with burns and other injuries.
Dead are Theresa Rozario, 12, and Clarissa Rozario, 14, who lived at the 65 King Street building with their father Hilrod Thomas, 63.
The fire which occurred sometime around 2 am.
Thomas, who is brother of former minister in the PNC administration Jeffrey Thomas, jumped from the burning building, after he was unable to save his trapped children. He sustained burns and injury to his limbs and is currently a patient at the George-town Public Hospital (GPH).
Thomas and his two daughters lived in the top flat of the three-storey building, while other parts of the building were occupied by small businesses.
Unconfirmed reports are that a person or persons unknown threw Molotov cocktails at the building resulting in the fire. However, Fire Chief Marlon Gentle informed Stabroek News yesterday that the Guyana Fire Service team is currently working in conjunction with the police to determine what may have caused the fire.
Meanwhile, Zamara Rozario, another of Hilrod Thomas’s daughters said that when she visited him at the hospital she noted that one of his feet was burnt along with his abdomen. He was bleeding through his nose and was unable to speak, she added.
Zamara Rozario raised the suspicion of arson, relating that in 2009 there was a similar incident which involved persons throwing fireballs at the building. She said a fire had started, but it was quickly extinguished resulting in only a section of the building being burnt.
According to Stanley Paul, who operated a business in the building, he received a call yesterday from someone in the area who told him that two men were throwing Molotov cocktails at the building. The two men subsequently ran away after they were chased by sex workers in the area. Paul also explained that for some time now the property was under dispute and persons would often threaten to burn it.
Rosemarie Rozario, the mother of the dead girls, was inconsolable. She said that she and Hilrod had been separated for some time now and the last time she saw the two youngest of her eight children was last Saturday. She also said Hilrod would often refuse to allow her to see the children and that she would usually go to a vendor’s stand across the road and would wait for hours just to get an opportunity to see her two daughters.
“I can’t believe my two daughters dead. When I get the message this morning [yesterday] I couldn’t believe it. The father doesn’t allow me to see them steady and every time I get to spend with them I does make use and look now, dem gone away; dem get trapped and get burn,” she cried.
Theresa Rozario was a student of the New Guyana Trust College and Clarissa Rozario was a student of St John’s College. The pavement at King Street yesterday was flooded with teary-eyed schoolmates of the two girls.
A student from St John’s, who requested anonymity, said Clarissa was her best friend and that she was an aspiring singer.
“She always tell me that she will be a big time singer some day and now she’s gone. God rest her soul. She was like a sister to me, so much plans we does make…,” the student said choking back her tears.
The girls are survived by their six siblings, Damien, Adam, Zamara and Vanessa Rozario and Malinda and Jeffrey Thomas.
Deputy Mayor Patricia Chase-Green was also on scene and related that the events that transpired were tragic and heartrending. She expressed her condolences to the family, relatives and friends of the girls.
“It is always a sad moment when we lose material things. But to lose lives is most unfortunate, especially the lives of children. We can always replace material things but we can’t replace a life, my heartfelt sympathies to the family and friends of the two girls,” Chase-Green said. In anticipation of the Christmas season approaching she cautioned persons about the overloading of electrical circuits and encourage persons to be more alert.
