A fire of unknown origin gutted the Lyndon Johnson Community Centre building in Linden, Region 10 (Upper Demerara-Berbice) on Friday.
Reports are the fire started inside the building situated at Victory Valley, Wismar, at about 04:30h.
The burnt-out community centre building in Linden
This newspaper was told that the flat concrete structure housed a computer room which contained eight computers along with several computer desks and chairs, all of which were burnt.
Firefighters from the Linden Fire Station were summoned to the location shortly after, however, by the time they arrived the building was already engulfed in flames. The firemen were unsuccessful in saving the items in the building.
According to the electrician in charge of the Information and Communication Technology section at the centre, Leon McBean, he left the location at about 00:30h on Friday after watching a basketball game on one of the computers in the computer room. He noted that he secured the building and proceeded to his Victory Valley home. McBean said he was later awakened by a friend who informed him that the building was on fire and he immediately went to the location. By the time he arrived, he noted, the fire was already extinguished by firemen.
Meanwhile, residents of the Victory Valley community noted that they are adversely affected by the loss.
The inside of the gutted building
In April, the Government commissioned the Play Park, situated at the Victory Valley Community Centre Ground which also housed the centre. Resident Ken McBean said the community uses the centre as a meeting point to socialise.
“All we community projects we plan from here. Recently the Government give we free Wi-Fi. All the children does come here. This is the computer room. It had about eight to nine computers in here, where the children does come and do their homework and stuff. We will be glad for the Government and other donor agency to help us to get back a centre as early as possible. It’s a great loss to us,” he said. The Police and Fire Services have launched investigations into the incident.
