The GFS yesterday said that the fire that claimed the lives of 30-year-old Zella Lawrence, 16-year-old Angelique Lawrence, and 8-year-old Ronika Lawrence on Christmas Day was maliciously set.
In a statement, the Guyana Fire Service (GFS) said that the blaze was maliciously set by person(s) unknown. The fire occurred around 2:05 a.m. on December 25th at Lot 2692, Central Amelia’s Ward, Linden.
The disclosure will now put pressure on the police to find the arsonist (s).
The aunt and her two nieces died from smoke inhalation, Regional Commander of Division 10 Superintendent Guy Nurse stated on Wednesday.
Onika Lawrence, the grief-stricken mother of Angelique and Ronika, and sister of Zella, told the Stabroek News on Wednesday that she was waiting to hear from the GFS on the matter. When asked if the apartment was grilled, she said that the windows, as well as the front and back doors were all grilled. However, she did not know what prevented her children and sister from escaping the fire.
The GFS had reported that firefighters from the Linden Fire Station responded to the fire at approximately 02.45 am. It noted that immediate action by firefighters contained the blaze to the lower flat of the building. The report added that a sofa set was destroyed, and four metres of ceiling, along with a quantity of clothing, were severely damaged.
In an earlier interview with Stabroek News, Onika had said that on Saturday she travelled with her two daughters to Linden to spend Christmas with family. Upon arrival in Linden, the trio stopped at Zella’s apartment in Amelia’s Ward; it was her first time visiting since her sister moved to her new apartment.
After a few hours, they went to the family house in Mora Street, Mackenzie. When they arrived there, Angelique told her that they had forgotten a bag with clothes at Zella’s apartment. She promised her daughter that they would retrieve it later.
At approximately 20.00 hours, Zella left work and went to Mora Street, and shortly after left for the supermarket, but Onika said she retired to bed before her sister returned. At about midnight, she was notified that her daughters had gone with their aunt to her apartment. She said she wasn’t alarmed and returned to bed. However, at about 02.00 hours, they received a call telling them that Zella’s apartment was on fire. When she got to the scene, she said, she was told that her sister and daughters were unable to escape the apartment.
Onika recalled that when she later visited the hospital, she noted that the bodies of her daughters and sister were not burnt.
Thirty-year-old Zella was a nurse and a mother of two – a six-year-old and a baby who will be one year-old on December 29.
Sixteen-year-old Angelique was a student of Golden Grove Secondary School, East Coast Demerara. She was expected to sit the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate exams in 2024.
Eight-year-old Ronika was a student at Smith’s Memorial Primary, Georgetown.
“I feel devastated and broken,” Onika lamented. “I no longer have my two girls and sister with me.”
