Some of the items that were damaged in the storeroom at the Number 8 Primary School
A section of a storeroom at the Number Eight Village Primary School, West Coast Berbice, was destroyed by fire on Friday morning.
The Guyana Fire and Rescue Service received a report of the fire at about 08:30h and two fire tenders – one each from the Onverwagt and New Amsterdam Fire Stations – were dispatched to the Region Five (Mahaica-Berbice) school.
Upon arrival at the scene, several pockets of fire were observed in the storeroom in the school’s compound.
The firefighters succeeded in containing the blaze to only a section of that room by extinguishing the flames.
A quantity of school supplies including documents, kitchen utensils and detergents were destroyed.
This section of the school’s storeroom was unaffected by Friday morning’s blaze
It was reported that prompt response from the Fire Service coupled with quick action by teachers and other persons at the school averted any further destruction to the property and also prevented any injuries.
Guyana Times understands that the fire was electrical in origin.
Over the past two years, at least five schools have been affected by fire. These include North Ruimveldt Multilateral School and St George’s High School in Georgetown; Essequibo Technical Institute (ETI); Amelia’s Ward Primary School in Region 10; and North-West Secondary School.
The fire at North Ruimveldt Multilateral School occurred in June last year, leaving 512 students and 39 teachers displaced during the time when 65 of those students were scheduled to write the 2021 Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate (CSEC) examination.
The North-West Secondary School fire, on the other hand, occurred in September last year. Inquiries disclosed that a security guard of Baranobo Hill, Mabaruma, was in his guard hut on his cellular phone when he heard three loud explosions. The sounds emanated from a room on the second floor of the eastern side of the building. Checks were made and he observed the room engulfed in flames. Upon the Fire Service’s arrival on the scene, the fire was extinguished – but most of the building was damaged. That fire was ruled out as arson.
Then in July of this year, a massive fire destroyed St George’s High School in Georgetown. That was electrical in nature, the Guyana Fire and Rescue Service had said.
Following the blaze, the Education Ministry commenced a registration process for displaced students to ensure that they were placed in a school for the new academic year.
In early October, a major catastrophe was averted when a fire, electrical in nature, was averted at the Amelia’s Ward Primary School in Region 10. Reports are that a staff member observed flames in one of the classrooms and immediately sounded an alarm for students to evacuate the area. Staffers at the school managed to contain the fire.
Fire responders were called to the school and an investigation was conducted. That fire was also electrical in nature.
Also last month, a major fire was averted at the Essequibo Technical Institute (ETI) after a fast response by the Guyana Fire and Rescue Service led to its quick extinguishing. The Guyana Fire and Rescue Service in a release the following day said that the incident may have occurred as a result of a breakdown in electrical installation.
