A fire yesterday afternoon destroyed a Meadowbrook home and left the sole occupant homeless.
Stabroek News learnt that at around 12:50 pm, the fire was seen by neighbours, who raised an alarm.
The house was occupied by an individual identified by neighbours only as Paul. At the time, neighbours said, the man was not at home.
One neighbour, Sharon Bentham, told Stabroek News that her grandson observed the smoke from the street and informed his mother. The woman said that initially, they thought the smoke was coming from their house but after checks were made, they saw it emanating from the neighbouring house.
Bentham said that she was on her way home from church when she learnt of the fire. Her husband was at home sleeping and was awoken by the intense heat.
She related that as a result of the heat, the windows on the eastern side of her house broke.
Bentham’s husband told this publication that after he woke up, he called out to the neighbour but got no answer and later learnt that the man was out.
The fire service responded in a timely manner with three fire tenders and managed to contain the blaze to the house.
Bentham said that if the fire service hadn’t responded in a timely manner, her house would have caught fire.
The origin of the blaze remains unknown and the fire service has launched an investigation.
