Twenty-eight persons were displaced as a result of Wednesday’s fire at Puruni in Region Seven.
No casualties or injuries were reported, according to a release yesterday from the Guyana Fire Service (GFS).
The GFS said that the fire broke out at approximately 10:30 am on Wednesday in the Miners Choice area of Puruni Landing, affecting several structures, including a fuel station, guest houses, and storage facilities.
The fire started at a fuel station owned by Glaston Fiffee, 46, and his wife, Alanna Fiffee, 37. Early reports, the release said, suggest that a faulty fuel pump may have caused the fire, though this has not yet been confirmed.
“Workers at the station were reportedly selling gasoline when the pump malfunctioned and burst into flames, igniting nearby combustible materials and causing the fire to spread rapidly, destroying the building”, the release said.
In addition to the fuel station, several other properties were affected, including three guest houses, three storage bonds, three living quarters, two restaurants, one ice house, one boutique, one dwelling house, one generator room, and one variety store.
Several pieces of equipment, vehicles and boats were also damaged, including three engines, three dredge pumps, four generators, one ATV, three XR motorcycles, five boats with Yamaha engines, four trucks, and a pickup truck.
At the time of the fire, the release said that 28 people were occupying the living quarters and guest houses. They have all been displaced as a result of the blaze.
“Residents, including local miners, bravely stepped in to help contain the fire using their mining equipment, such as water pumps, showing exceptional courage and community spirit in the face of danger. Their quick res-ponse, along with the Bartica Fire Station’s deployment of Light Pump #A113, which drew water from an open source, was instrumental in bringing the blaze under control to prevent further damage to the area”, the release said.
Further investigation into the cause of the fire is ongoing.
In a release on Wednes-day, the police had said that nine of the affected buildings belonged to Yvette McDonald, a businesswoman from Enmore, East Coast Demerara; four of the buildings belonged to Floyd Elcock, a businessman of Norton Street, Georgetown; one building belonged to Otis McKenzie, a businessman of Greenwich Park, East Bank Essequibo; and one building belonged to Williams Cozier, a boat captain from Tuschen Housing Scheme, EBE.
The police had said that their investigation so far had revealed the following:
**Miners Choice, own-ed by McDonald, consisted of three hotel buildings, a restaurant, workers’ living quarters, a fuel bond, and a nightclub. The business also stored and sold gasoline and diesel on a wholesale and retail basis.
** Elcock’s businesses included a grocery store, hotel, and restaurant, and he also stored and sold fuel in bulk.
** McKenzie operated a drug store, while Cozier’s building was used for residential purposes.
Preliminary reports, the police say, suggest the fire started while one of the workers at the ‘Miners Choice’ establishment was selling fuel. Some of the fuel spilt, ignited and quickly engulfed the buildings in the compound as well as the surrounding structures.
A Police ATV 3129, which was used by the ranks based at Puruni Landing, was also destroy-ed in the fire.
The total cost of damage is unknown at this time, and none of the affected buildings is said to be insured, the police had said.
