A devastating fire on Thursday evening destroyed two houses at Bushlot Village, West Coast Berbice leaving seven persons from two families contemplating their next move.
According to the victims, the fire service failed them after they responded with a small amount of water and a non-functioning pump.
Residents yesterday told Stabroek News that the fire first started at an unoccupied house belonging to an overseas-based family. However, it quickly spread next door to a two-storey wooden and concrete house which was occupied by a 79-year-old woman and her grandchildren along with tenants – a family of three in the lower flat.
Seventeen-year-old Bibi Isahack explained that she was fast asleep when her brothers woke her up just around midnight, rushing her to wake their grandmother to leave the premises immediately.
She said she quickly got up and noticed that the house behind them was completely engulfed in flames. “Me hold grandma hand and me run down the steps and me watch back for me big brother and lil brother and them been deh behind awe.”
According to Isahack, she was extremely confused in that moment as they quickly began experiencing a strong heat. “Me forget the girl living downstairs and when me remember me start pound the door and start holla for she and tell she to come out the house and she run out.”
Isahack stressed that at that stage the fire had not caught on to their house but moments after the fire service arrived the blaze spread to the “curtains (that) hang on we back veranda and …so it start catch.”
The young woman and her family along with residents believe that the fire service failed them on Thursday evening. They all believe that had the firefighters gone into action immediately and had a functioning pump then their house could have been saved.
“The fire went on the veranda and them spray lil water from the zinc and the water finish and then we house start catch a fire on the wood … at the back and them just stood there and watch and persons were shouting at them to use the trench water”, she said
A baffled Isahack said that although residents pleaded with the firefighters to use the water from the trench they refused to get into the trench. “We beg them, them people beg them to use the trench water… We had to really beg them.”
However, two male villagers then offered to get into the trench to assist the situation. “Them two man (villagers) start digging underneath the mud to place the pump.” But at that stage the villagers were informed that the pump was not working as such there was no access to water to put out the fire.
The devastated young woman who lost all her belongings in the fire said, “they (firemen) literally stand up and watch the house burn down… I end up leaving because I couldn’t watch it. Everything we had gone.”
Meanwhile, based on information gathered, a fire tender from New Amsterdam in Region Six eventually responded and extinguished the fire but at that time the two houses were already completely destroyed.
Isahack estimated the losses for both families to be several millions. As of yesterday afternoon she said a relative had offered to keep them until they are able to decide their next move.
Persons desirous of offering assistance can make contact with Isahack on telephone number 681-9017.
