Multi-million dollar complex prevented from going up in flames

Traffic jams and diversions, curious onlookers, temporary road and business closures, disruption of electricity supply and poor crowd management were all hallmarks this morning as the Guyana Fire Service (GFS) battled to contain a fire at a multi-million complex on Robb Street (between Camp and Alexander Streets) in Georgetown.

The cause of the fire which started on the fourth floor of the clothing store is still not determined.

The development saw the Fire Service bringing out his hydraulic platform along with its regular tenders and manpower to contain the fire to one building.

At the end, the building had its third and second floor completely gutted. There was no reported injury.

The Guyana Power and Light Emergency Crew were out monitoring the situation even as to ensure that all connecting power grids were properly de-energised.

The police for its part, stood ready to prevent looters and after some time, sent for reinforcement to address the issue of crowd control which grew out of hand.

Also at the scene was Minister of Public security, Khemraj Ramjattan.

But it was not all good work in the eyes of some spectators who thought that the local firefighters could have done a better job as they accused the firemen of not effectively utilising their resources.

From all indications, with the exception of the ground floor, all other levels of the building sought to be used as storage facility for the clothing store.

The fire remains under investigation.