At least four persons are homeless after three separate fires destroyed their houses on Saturday and Sunday. The fires were all believed to be deliberately set.
The Guyana Fire Service, in a statement, noted that firefighters from the Mahaica Fire Station responded to a fire at Mosquito Hall, Unity, East Coast Demerara at about 23:45 hrs Saturday.
When the firefighters arrived at the scene, a two-storey wooden building was engulfed in flames. They battled the flames but their efforts proved futile as the building, owned by Kubram Ramlall, and another one-storey house at the same address was destroyed due to heat radiating from the fire.
Shirley Pitambar and Desmond Randall occupied the building.
And importantly, it was noted that the fire was “maliciously set.”
Around the same time of the Unity fire, at 23:39 hrs Saturday, there was another fire at Blueberry Hill, Wismar, Linden. An abandoned two-storey building was set ablaze and the first floor of the building was severely damaged.
Finally, there was another fire at Mon Repos squatting area at about 04:19 hrs on Sunday. A flat wooden building, which was the home of Kevin Mohamed, was destroyed. Firefighters also tried to extinguish this fire; it was later determined that the fire was an act of arson.
This is a sad state. of affairs. Why must one try to displace another when accommodation is so difficult to come by. . To rebuild a home is so costly and refurnishing is just as costly. It would be a good thing if arsonists could only sit and think how persons feel when their homes are destroyed by fire and the aftermath.