The fire that destroyed a section of the bustling Charity Market, Region Two on Thursday evening left three fire-fighters injured and destroyed twenty-nine stalls.
Eleven other stalls suffered damage as a result of firefighting.
Investigations are underway by the Guyana Police Force, Fire Prevention Officers and the Government Electrical Inspectorate to ascertain what caused the fire.
The GPF said that at about 7.15 on Thursday evening a police sergeant on his way to the Charity Police Station observed smoke emanating from the roof in the middle of the market and immediately alerted the security guards employed by NM Security Services, who were on duty.
Police opened the market gates that were at the time secured with padlocks with the keys that were lodged at the Charity Police Station. It was observed that sparks and smoke were coming from an electrical meter, which is located at the centre of the market.
Efforts by the security guards, police ranks and residents who formed a bucket brigade in an attempt to extinguish the fire failed.
According to a Guyana Fire Service (GFS) press release, at about 7.20 on Thursday evening it received a call alerting them to a fire at the Charity Amazon Market. Water tenders #77 and #88 along with their crew from the Anna Regina Fire Station were immediately dispatched to the scene.
Two jets working from WT#77, one jet from light pump #86, and two jets from WT# 88 were used to extinguish the fire.
The structure involved was a one-flat wooden and concrete building owned by the Neighbourhood Democratic Council and occupied as a market, which housed 83 stalls.
Firefighting efforts resulted in the fire being contained to the central portion of the market and the damage being contained to just about 40% of the building.
The firemen injured at the scene were Station Officer Springer and Leading Fireman Tribuwan who suffered electric shocks while an object fell on the head of Fireman Ramadhin and he suffered minor injuries. They were all rushed to the Suddie Public Hospital for medical attention.
Minister of Home Affairs Robeson Benn told Stabroek News on Thursday evening that the fire started at the centre of the market.
The Imamudeen and Singh families are counting millions of dollars in losses as many of their stalls went up in flames. Chandroutie Imamudeen who has been vending since 1980 said that she is still in shock after she heard the news. She said that she had three stalls with over 21 tables.
In addition, her son Fizul Immaudeen has his own stall and her daughter-in-law Shelly Prince has her own. She said that the entire family is selling to sustain their livelihood. They sell school items including footwear, bags, pants and shirts.
Like Imamudeen, Shatrughan Singh has been operating a boutique for over 35 years.
He could not believe the news when he heard. Singh has three large stalls with 14 tables selling items worth millions of dollars. He had recently restocked his stall and was hoping to make a profit in the coming months.
Ava Thompson. 39 years of Charity said that she decided to open her own business. She invested her money to start a marine store and stock engine items to sell. She said that she heard of the news around 7 pm and could not save anything from her stall. All the power systems. propellers. pumps and other engine parts went up in flames.
Minerva Cornelius was also very saddened over her lose. She operates stall 4 and has been vending for eight years. She said that she recently returned from overseas after shopping for brand-name items for her store.
The vendors are hoping that Government will intervene and help them with cash so that they can re-start their business and carry on with their livelihoods.
Benn accompanied by Station Officer, Courtney Springer; Region 2 Commander, Khemraj Shivbaran; Government Electrical Inspectorate Region 2, Nazir Khan; NDC Chairman, Chandrawattie Coomal, and other officials yesterday visited the Charity market to assess the damage from the fire.
During an engagement with the vendors at the site, Benn made note of the fire safety issues within the structure and encumbrances that contributed to the fire and hindered fire-fighting efforts, respectively. He suggested that a new market be constructed that is fully equipped with fire protection measures.
Engagement with the vendors saw them decry the state of the market, highlighting silted-up drainage in the area, which made it difficult for firefighter to gain access to additional water.
Minster within the Ministry of Public Works Deodat Indar also visited the Charity Market yesterday and inspected the damage caused by the fire. He was accompanied by the RDC Chairman, Vilma DaSilva, and RDC Vice Chairman, Omesh Oodit, as well as REO Susanna Saywack and senior officials from the GPF and GFS.
