Fourteen persons have been displaced after a fire, suspected to have been electrical in origin, destroyed their Corentyne house on Thursday.
Kulcharran Prashad, 63, of Section ‘C’, Lot 56 Number 79 Village, Corentyne, explained that he was in his room in the lower flat of the house when a wire on his fan suddenly sparked and ignited nearby curtains, which soon resulted in flames quickly spreading throughout the 50-year-old house.
“Same time I run out, and them pickney downstairs run gone a side,” he recounted.
According to the man, he first attempted to try to remove some items from his house but he was unable to do so because of how quickly the flames spread. He recalled standing outside of the premises watching all of his belongings along with those of his wife, children, in-laws and grandchildren being destroyed.
The elderly man added that he had some cash saved in the house and that was also destroyed in the fire along with jewellery belonging to his wife. “All abbay cloth them, all them pickney thing, everything burn out. Some money me spend last year to make me house since yesterday me a cry,” the emotional man related.
A devastated Prashad also voiced his disgust at the Guyana Fire Service, which he said failed him. He claimed the fire service arrived without water and then took some time to get water from the “waterside trench.”
“They run two hose, one here and one deh, and then the machine na work good for them to pump the water… Them na come with water you know fa out the house quick so the house burn down,” he said.
According to the man, had the fire service gone into action as soon as they arrived a section of his house could have possibly been saved.
Prashad said last year he invested some money and repaired sections of his house and bought some new furnishings, all of which became losses.
As of yesterday the confused man was unable to put an estimate to his losses.
Prashad resided with his wife, four sons, their wives and children in the house. Presently, they are staying at their neighbour’s house.
With Prashad saying that he did not have the money to rebuild, his sons were on the hunt for a house to rent.
Meanwhile, his daughter-in-law, Kathy Augustus, 24, who was at home during the fire, noted that she was cooking outside on the fireside when she heard a crackling sound.
She said after she looked inside and saw flames she started to scream to alert the children and other relatives.
She recalled, that her father-in-law, who was in the house, did not want to leave but wanted to stay and remove some items but “me husband haul am out let them come out.”
She added, “Everything loss. Abbay na get nothing. All thing done.”
The family is pleading for assistance and can be contacted on their neighbour’s telephone number: 339–3139.
