…lit kerosene stove falls as mother prepares dinner
Tragedy struck in the Buckville Squatting Area of Linden in Region Ten (Upper Demerara-Berbice) on Tuesday evening when one-year-old Azeza Albert lost her life in a fire that engulfed and devastated her family’s home.
Reports are that the fire, which erupted at around 19:30h, tore through the flat wooden building owned by 22-year-old Anikha Harris, who resided there with her 27-year-old husband and two children, aged one and two.
Dead: Azeza Albert (NCN photo)
According to the Guyana Fire Service, Harris was in the kitchen preparing dinner on a lit kerosene stove that was resting on an old gas stove. As she fried eggs for her children, the kerosene stove accidentally fell to the floor, igniting nearby combustible materials, including a curtain that separated the kitchen from the bedroom.
The fire that destroyed the house at Mon Repos, ECD
In a desperate attempt to escape the flames, the one-year-old girl ran towards her mother, but tragically had to run into the fire to get to her. The mother managed to escape the burning building with her two children, and raised an alarm. The injured child was rushed to the Linden Hospital Complex, where she received medical attention, but due to the severity of her injuries, she was transferred to the Georgetown Public Hospital, where, despite the efforts of medical professionals, she succumbed to her injuries at about 23:00h on Tuesday evening.
The Linden house that was destroyed by fire
The GFS said on Wednesday that a fire tender had been dispatched to the scene along with five firemen. However, the entire house was razed to the ground.
Arson
Meanwhile, a fire on Wednesday morning wreaked havoc at Lot 233 Mon Repos North, Block 7, Fifth Street, East Coast Demerara. It was reported that the fire started at about 03:23h.
The Guyana Fire Service on Wednesday said that it responded to the location with water two water tenders and an ambulance.
Fifteen firefighters managed to extinguish the blaze that had engulfed a two-storey wooden and concrete building.
The building was owned by Kurt Lalchand and occupied by Falesha Sumner and her family of seven. GFS said that the fire was maliciously set by person(s) unknown.
As a result, the building and its contents were destroyed, leaving eight persons homeless. Additionally, two houses in close proximity to the building of origin were also affected.
No casualties were reported in that incident. (G9)
