The Guyana Fire Service was yesterday finally able to extinguish a wildfire that raged through Rome on the East Bank of Demerara on Friday and large swathes of land have been left charred.
Stabroek News visited the area yesterday and interviewed Bobby Gopi, a contractor from Junior Sammy Inc, who was present at the scene. He said, “Sometimes, the fire is triggered by bottles that are recklessly thrown into the dry bushes, and when combined with the wind, it can easily ignite large areas of vegetation.”
He added, “Sometimes, a spark from our machinery can unknowingly set off a fire. You don’t notice it until you see smoke, and suddenly, there’s a full-blown fire.” Gopi stated that the brushfires have disrupted their work, forcing him and his colleagues to leave the area due to the heavy smoke. He mentioned that the fire service has been responding to these incidents, “We mainly suffer from the smoke, but the fire service has been actively involved.”