By Joseph Allen
Fifteen persons are now homeless following a fire at Howes Street, Charlestown, Georgetown, believed to have been caused by an overheated electrical point.
According to a report from the Guyana Fire Service (GFS), the fire was called in at 18.45 hours prompting the immediate dispatch of seven officers, fifteen firefighters, six EMTs, three water tenders, and three ambulances from the Central, Alberttown, and West Ruimveldt fire stations. Upon arrival at the scene, they observed a three-storey wooden and concrete building on fire.
The Fire Service noted that the first appliance arrived on the scene at 18.50 hours, and the fire was completely extinguished at approximately 20.20 hours. A fire hydrant in the area along with water from the trucks were used to extinguish the blaze.
While the blaze was contained, all the contents of the home were destroyed and investigations are underway to determine what caused the fire.
When Stabroek News arrived on the scene, the building in which the fire started was completely engulfed, while the neighbouring homes were scorched along with a car that was nearby.
One occupant, Odessa Alves, said that it was a family home and they had been living there for 42 years.
She recalled that she had gone to get her children from lessons and on returning to the house her son shouted out, “Mommy, mommy, fire!”
Alves said that she ventured upstairs and saw fire in the middle of the upper flat of the building and a wire sparking.
“The fire started at 6:45pm because at 6:35pm I meet back here from the lessons because it’s just a five-minute drive in Albouystown. So, when I got home and I stood outside talking to someone, my son went into the middle flat and my son said ‘Mommy fire, fire.’ So I run from the front step and go up. When I went, I saw the wire sparking and like it caught a box that went next to the wire and when I went to pull the box, it would have already caught up. Nobody went in the middle room.”
At that moment, she went to save her 97-year-old grandmother and make sure her brother who was in the back room got out, and that was it. She lamented that nothing could have been saved.
Alves however believes that parts of the building could have been saved if the GFS came with sufficient water.
“The fire service could have saved the building because it wasn’t so high that the house could have burned right down because when the truck came up a side like it didn’t have any particular water inside because two sprays and the water finished. Then I saw the next truck calling and about the next hour the next truck came from another side.”
Now, with everything gone, the visibly distraught mother said that she does not where to turn since she now has to fend for herself and her three children ages 8, 9 and 16 years.
Alves stated that anyone willing to help her can contact her on mobile number 691-6066.
Responding to the criticism, Fire Chief, Gregory Wickham, spoke to the media after the incident and emphasised that the fire trucks had adequate water.
“The tenders also turned up with water. The tender will always use water from its tank supply. The water in the tank supply is just about 250 gallons of water and we have a pump that is attached to that appliance that pumps at 250 psi. So, within a short while, that water will be exhausted and so they will have to move, which is in keeping with our regular standard operating procedures, to open a source of water or to a nearby hydrant to get water. The other tenders coming in will lend support to water relay or they may even go to open sources of water based on the magnitude of the fire. So, often you will hear people say tenders will turn up with water but that cannot be true.”
As such Wickham contended that those allegations could not be true since all tenders are always full and ready to fight the fire.
At this fire he disclosed that they experienced some difficulty with electrical wires and one person suffered burn marks on his back.
