A Saturday afternoon fire gutted the top storey of the old Nurses Hostel at Charles Place, New Amsterdam, Berbice.
Eyewitness Hananiyahor Warde told Stabroek News that he was returning home shortly after 1pm when he saw smoke emanating from the top flat of the building. He raised an alarm and phoned the fire service. According to the man, about two minutes after his call, the fire service responded.
Although the firemen initially encountered problems in acquiring water, they were successful in containing the fire after they got water from a nearby fire hydrant and a canal.
Warde related that he heard residents saying that the fire may have been caused by a mentally challenged man. “People saying them saw him yesterday making illegal connections with electrical wire as well as them saying that he smoke, so you don’t know how exactly the fire start, but them saying is he,” the man divulged.
The 50-year-old building was used to house nurses who came from remote areas and were attached to the New Amsterdam Public Hospital. However, those nurses are now being accommodated at a private building which costs the government more than $300,000 per month.
According to information gathered, the old building is in the first stages of rehabilitation and about two weeks ago, contractors were asked to submit estimates for repairs.
