1 injured, 5 homeless following West Berbice fires

One person has been injured while five have been rendered homeless following two fires which erupted at separate locations along the West Coast of Berbice (WCB) on Friday.

One of the fires destroyed a building at Number 41 Village, while the other gutted a house at Number 9 Village.
According to Divisional Fire Officer Floyd McDonald, one of the fires is electrical in nature, while the other has resulted from a child playing with matches.
Reports are that shortly after 16:00h on Friday, smoke was seen coming from a section of a building at Number 41 Village. McDonald said 29-year-old Leon Omar, a father, received first-degree burns as a result of that fire. The farmer had reportedly gone into the burning building to save valuables, but was repelled by the heat, resulting in him receiving the injuries. He was taken to the Fort Wellington Hospital, where he was admitted a patient.
McDonald said a child was playing with matches, and the flame ignited combustible material which caused the fire to eventually spread throughout the one-storey wooden building. The building and its contents were completely destroyed.
The injured man’s father, Reggie Khumchand, told this publication that he was not at home, but he saw smoke emanating from the building.
According to the labourer, the fire was seen coming from the kitchen area, and it quickly engulfed the single flat building.
“I don’t know if it is the points; the electrical points that you push in the phone charger, and they left it plugged in. I can’t tell you. But that is right where we see everything coming from.”
The fire has left Khumchand, his son, daughter-in-law, and their two children aged 6 and 1, homeless.
According to the labourer, at the time of the fire, the six-year-old was in the yard and his mother was under the house. The one-year-old was the only person in the building. As such, he is debunking reports that the fire was started as a result of the children playing with matches.
Reports are that after an alarm was raised, a child who lived next door went into the building and removed the infant.
The family was unable to save anything. In fact, the family slept at a brother’s house on the night of the fire, but they are uncertain of the future.
“He is in the US, but I don’t know how long I will be able to stay there,” Khumchand pointed out.
According to him, the building was rebuilt about four years ago at a cost of $2M. He estimates that another million dollars were destroyed in household articles.
He is seeking assistance to ‘get back on his feet’, and is reaching out to the corporate society. He can be contacted on telephone number 232-3113.
Meanwhile, at Number 9 Village, neighbours formed a bucket brigade and were able to extinguish a midday fire.
Household items were damaged, but villagers were able to save the building from total destruction. All three of the occupants were out at the time.
When the Fire Service arrived on the scene, the fire was already extinguished.
According to McDonald, initial investigations gave the cause of the fire as electrical.