By Khadidja Ba
A fire that posed a serious threat to life, originating from a 20-lb Massy Gas bottle around 11 am on Christmas Day, has left Tuschen resident Annalisa Boodwah deeply traumatized.
In a conversation with SN yesterday, the mother recounted that just moments before, representatives from Massy Gas had conducted an investigation. Up to press time, Massy Gas had not released a statement in response to this incident.
According to Boodwah, the Massy Gas officials informed her that the fire was caused by her usage of a faulty regulator; however, she said, “They explained to me about the top that I had on it and advised me on what I should purchase instead. So, I asked why they don’t educate the public on this; they should inform people. Then the man, later identified as ‘Ryan,’ responded, ‘people are looking for cheap options.’ If individuals were aware that this could endanger their lives, I don’t think they’d be using a regulator that is already causing issues!”.
When questioned about when she bought the regulator, Boodwah replied, “I’ve had this regulator for 12 years! Only now, with this bottle, they are telling me it’s the regulator that’s faulty. I’ve used the same regulator with different bottles over the years!”. Boodwah continued, explaining that she bought the bottle from her mother’s store, “There are people in the area who sell these bottles back to others who then sell them to us. I purchased it from my mother’s shop.”
Detailing the events leading up to the fire, Boodwah said, “I light the stove, well I waited for the stove to heat up a little nah, when I not using the gas, I turn it back on when I ready to use it, so I turn it on, light the stove, wait for the stove to heat up then put in the cake. My phone rang at the same time so I went to answer the phone. By the time I answer the call and walk back and go to the kitchen, when I reach now I see the whole top of the bottle full of fire, so like I done start panic because like it’s a brand new gas and I thinking if I go down there now it will blow up and I will get myself damage so I run out back and stand up by the kitchen door and dash water from a distance but it didn’t outing it just keep raising raising all the time. That is when I decide to come out and holler for help. This neighbour over that side come out and he take a spade and push the bottle out and throw sand on it. The thing run reach up to me ceiling.”
Massy reportedly offered to replace the bottle, but Boodwah declined the offer, stating, “They wanted to replace the bottle and put their regulator on it, but I asked, ‘What are you putting it on?’ because I don’t have a stove right now. They mentioned wanting to take the bottle away, but I said no!”.
Following this, Boodwah mentioned that the Massy Gas representative named “Ryan” asked her why she disposed of her stove. “I explained that my stove was damaged, and Ryan said, ‘Did you condemn the stove because it burned on the side?’ I replied, ‘What do you expect me to do? Bring it back inside and relive those memories? Why would I want to bring the stove inside? I’m watching the wall in the house, and I friken to use a stove in there again right now.”
When questioned about whether she had previously used the bottle, Boodwah responded, “I used it for a 10 minutes to cook fish curry the day before and that’s the only time I used it, I does turn off when I done using the gas. Since I living with my ex husband I was using this regulator, I carry it by my mother shop and everything, but okay, if this thing had fault, it didn’t burn from the hose or nothing, it burnt from the top”.
There have been three other fire incidents with Massy cylinders in recent months.
On December 17th, a family in Little Abary in Region Five grappled with the aftermath of a 20-lb Massy gas bottle explosion that rocked their home leaving them without basic utilities and seeking answers from the supplier.
On November 30th, SN reported that a life-threatening situation was narrowly avoided in a Better Hope home on November 29 thanks to the quick thinking and calm actions of Necolese Alexander, a career ICU nurse.
On August 29th, Massy Gas said it was ready to aid in the probe of an explosion of a 20-lb cylinder that allegedly belonged to it. The notice referred to an incident at a home on 1st August, 2024. It said that it had visited the family in question and had expressed sympathies to the husband of the occupant who was injured.