7 homeless after fire ravages 2 houses in Essequibo

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One of the houses on fire on Saturday

fire suspected to be electrical in origin destroyed two houses at Aurora, Old Road, Region Two (Pomeroon-Supenaam), on Saturday, leaving at least seven persons homeless.
The fire reportedly started at about 17:00h, resulting in millions of dollars in losses.
As a result of the blaze, a young lady has been hospitalised. Based on reports received, the property was owned by 55-year-old Sherifan Gafoor and at the time it was occupied by her children.
She and her son reportedly lived in the upper flat of the house while her now hospitalised daughter occupied the lower flat. The second house which was not occupied at the time was also destroyed by the inferno.
The devastated woman and her children are now seeking refuge at one of her sister’s place at Adventure. Gafoor told Guyana Times that she is still shaken by the ordeal.
The tearful woman related that her hard-earned money went up in the flames, explaining that the house was fully furnished with all modern household amenities. She was, however, fast to blame the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) for her devastation.
This is so since the woman related that she would have made several reports to the utility company about faulty wiring hanging in front of her house but they never rectified the problem.
“Ah went many times at the office and I complain about that wire… they came to fix it and it still hanging and every time breeze blows the wire sparks,” the woman stated

Sherifan Gafoor and a granddaughter on Sunday

The woman further stated that millions went up in flames and was too devastated to determine her next move. Nevertheless, the mother of five explained that after the fire started, the fire service at Anna Region was summoned to the scene.
Not only did they turn up late, but the tanks were out of water. As such, she also lashed out at the fire service for the magnitude of destruction.
She said had the firefighters arrived on time and were at least in possession of water, sections of the house could have been saved. As such, villagers formed a bucket brigade to contain the blaze. Although the residents tried, nothing was saved from the two-storey buildings. An investigation has been launched into the incident.
Meanwhile, anyone who wishes to assist the family can contact them on telephone number 685-9976.