A fire that was caused by illegal electrical connections yesterday morning gutted a one-flat wooden stall at Bourda and Charlotte streets and damaged two others.
A Guyana Fire Service [GFS] release stated that around 7:40 am yesterday, it was alerted to the fire and Water Tenders #89, #105, and #16, along with their respective crews from the Central, Alberttown, and Campbellville fire stations were immediately dispatched to the scene. The GFS said it was observed that a wooden stall, owned by Norlana Brown was on fire. One jet working from Water Tender #89 along with a water relay system from Water Carrier #16 was used to extinguish the fire. The stall and its contents were destroyed. Stall 13A, a cosmetology stall owned by Vanessa Peters, was affected by heat from the fire and as a result, the southern external wall was severely damaged and its 3.5m PVC ceiling completely destroyed.
Stall #2, Samantha’s Shoe Box and Clothing Store, owned by Samantha Glasgow was also affected by heat and its northern external wall was severely damaged along with one solar panel and 1 CCTV circuit camera. An AC unit was completely destroyed.
The GFS said that the fire was caused by illegal connections which overloaded and overheated.
Vanessa Peters, whose stall was affected by the blaze, told Stabroek News yesterday that she’s not aware as to what happened as she only knew about the fire when she received a call from her daughter. Peters said that it’s customary for vagrants to access the stall via its back entrance; the vagrants, she said, cook and smoke in the stall. She said, “…it had to be something he left lighting and went away.” Peters admitted that she was aware about the illegal electrical connections but doesn’t believe that was the cause of the fire.
Peters said that her daughter had recently put in a new ceiling and painted the wall to start her Make-Up Studio Business but unfortunately the ceiling and the wall were damaged by the heat from the fire. Peters is seeking compensation from the Mayor and City Council for damage which she estimates at about 1 million dollars. Simone Smith, whose stall is located nearby related to this newspaper that about 7:00am yesterday she received a call about the fire. She said that she too cannot say what happened but related that this isn’t the first time vagrants have been cooking and smoking in the stall. She said, “In fact, we (vendors) warned the owner of the stand (stall) but she wasn’t ready to fix the stand as yet… and the ‘junkies’ would sleep and cook in it and all of that.”
Smith further added that the stall where the fire started was unoccupied and dilapidated, and had no electricity. Smith commended the GFS for being on time and said that everything worked well in putting the fire out. She urged the City Constabulary to do something about the vagrants because they are always lighting fire in the area.
She said, “I don’t know what the authority will do about the ‘junkies’ because they always lighting fire, everybody here knows of it…We (vendors) reported this many times to the City Constabulary, but I mean, what can they do to remove ‘junkies’?… even if the City Constabulary remove the ‘junkies’, they will come back when the authorities [are] gone”.
Another stall owner who wished not to be named told Stabroek News that she was carrying her children to school when she saw a report of a fire on Bourda Street on her Facebook feed. She said she recognized her stall in the video. When she arrived at the scene, her stall was not affected but the vendor said while she does not how the fire started, she is stressed out about the behaviour of the vagrants.
She said “I think the stall should be taken away from the owner and given to someone who wants somewhere to work because if it wasn’t like that, the ‘junkies’ would not be inside the stall and smoke and so. It is the owner [who] caused this since she allowed the ‘junkies’ to dwell inside.”
