Fire razes Triumph house, 6 homeless

A fire, suspected to be electrical in origin, completely razed the dwelling of a Triumph, East Coast Demerara (ECD), family on Friday morning, leaving at least million in losses.
The fire reportedly started in the vicinity of the circuit breaker in the upper flat of the two-storey wooden structure located at Lot 4 Railway Street, Triumph, ECD and rapidly spread to other parts of the house.

 The entire house engulfed in flames on Friday morning
The entire house engulfed in flames on Friday morning

At the time of the blaze, the owner of house, Assistant Superintendent of Police, Ramesh Singh was at home along with his wife, daughter-in-law and grandson. Two other members of the house had already left for work. The occupants of the house at the time ran to safety and were not able to salvage any household items.
Reports are that by the time the Guyana Fire Service arrived at the scene, the building was already engulfed in flames. Speaking with Guyana Times, Assistant Superintendent Singh explained that he along with the other family members were in the lower flat of the house when he heard a sound as if dried leaves were on fire followed by the smell of smoke.
At that time, he thought that the smell and sound were coming from the cemetery which was being cleared. Soon after, he explained that his neighbours raised an alarm informing him that the house was on fire.
The neighbours rushed to the scene and formed a bucket brigade in an attempt to put out the blaze but their efforts proved futile. They were forced to retreat due to the intensity of the fire. “The neighbors later told me that the electric wire that runs from the main pole was sparking and then they see smoke and fire,” Singh noted.
He further stated that after the fire started, his only option was to make sure that his family was secured and it was a neighbour who drove his motorcar out of the yard. A report was made to the Guyana Power and Light but up to late Friday evening, officials from the utility company were still to visit the family.
An investigation has been launched into the fire by members of the Guyana Fire Service.