A family at Paradise, West Coast Berbice has been displaced after their four-bedroom wooden house collapsed yesterday during heavy winds and rainfall.
Verda Stanley, 42 was downstairs in the yard around 9.15 am doing laundry when she heard a loud crashing sound. She looked around and saw that her house had fallen off its posts and was flat on the ground.
Her 14-year-old daughter, Rondella Isaacs who was upstairs in the house fell with it and hurt her leg in the process. Another child, Qusy, 11,
was under the house but managed to run out to safety just in time.
Stanley’s husband, Lexley Reynolds, 52 was also in the yard during the disaster. The woman’s other children; Qubert, Roschelle and Qunicy Stanley, aged 15, 19 and 21 years old respectively were also residing there.
The family is distressed that apart from their clothing, foodstuff and other belongings getting wet during the heavy downpour, their household articles also got damaged.
When this newspaper visited the scene about one hour later it was still raining and the confused family was contemplating the next move.
They were also distressed about where they would get the funds to rebuild and said they would welcome any help.
Reynolds’ sisters and other relatives had also gone over to offer support. They recalled that during last year, a house belonging to another brother, Lexford Henry, 48, also collapsed during heavy winds.
According to them, he did not have the money to rebuild immediately and had secured his household articles in the fallen house while staying with a sister.
He left the area for a few days to attend a wedding and when he returned he discovered that persons had broken into the house and removed his zinc sheets and other materials. They also stole his household items including a mattress and stove.
