(Trinidad Express) Pedestrians covered their faces with rags and masks as a thick blanket of smoke laced with the fumes of burning plastics hung over downtown Port of Spain up to late last night following a fire which razed three businesses on lower Charlotte Street yesterday.
The rain that poured did little to extinguish the blaze which left approximately 30 workers without jobs and caused a traffic gridlock as several streets had to be closed off.
Fuelled by the plastic items contained in these stores up to 6 p.m. the blaze raged on as seemingly frustrated fire officers had to keep sending water tankers to be replenished as they battled the fire that would not die.
Fire officers declined comment on the availability of water but it was obvious that the fire hydrants located close to the blaze were not used.
The fire began around 11.45 a.m. in one of three stores housed in the three-storey building known as the Nahous building which is located along lower Charlotte Street two buildings away from Independence Square.
An employee at the Target Discount Store said he first noticed smoke emanating from the first floor of the building where mostly stock was stored.
Target Discount sells household items as well as items for the kitchen and bathroom.
On the left of the Target Store is Nahous and Sons which sells similar items. The other store located to the right of the Target Store, Joy’s Variety, sells hair products, clothing, fashion and beauty products as well as mostly plastic household items.
Most of the items stored in the Target Store were made of plastic and also packaged in plastic. The other stores had items packaged in plastic as well and, according to fire officers, when the fire in Target got out of control it quickly spread to the other stores, “in no time”, according to a fire officer who did not want to be named.
One officer even had to be taken to a waiting ambulance as he was seemingly overcome by the noxious fumes. Officers however used air tanks with breathing masks as they picked their way through the building to get to the fire.
“I was downstairs tending to customers and I see fire start to blaze on the first floor,” said the employee of the Target Store.
Another man, Robert Lue Chee-Tong, who owns the Wang Lee and Sons building which is next to the one that burnt said, “I wasn’t here when it started and when I came I could not even enter the building because there was a lot of smoke and it was burning my eyes and nose.”
Lue Chee-Tong added: “I cannot even assess the damage as yet but almost everybody will have Christmas stock at this time.”
A member of the Nahous family who did not wish to give his full name said, “I’m a little bit distressed right now, especially for the fire to occur at this time of the year. I really don’t want to say much.”
By noon, fire officers from the Wrightson Road Fire Headquarters were on the scene but by 2 p.m. they got backup from the Belmont, Woodbrook and Tunapuna Fire Stations.
They brought in two water tenders and with hoses connected to a fire hydrant they began attacking the blaze. Firemen who had to access the building from its side and the roof encountered plumes of thick, black noxious smoke.
Asked for a comment, president of the Downtown Owners and Merchants Association Gregory Aboud said: “I don’t have all the facts yet and all I know is that the reports are that there was a desperate water shortage in the fire hydrants and the fire trucks had to be supplemented by WASA and water trucks. This is of great concern to us because regardless of how heroic and courageous the firemen are, there is nothing they can do without water.”
Aboud continued: “We are also extremely concerned about the disruption to activity in the lower quadrant of Charlotte Street and are hopeful that operations in that area can return quickly. I am very worried over what will be the fate of the businesses that were damaged by the fire and those close to where the fire occurred.
Officers of the Besson Street Police and Central Police Station were brought in to control the crowd but the problem was worsened by curious onlookers with camera phones.
Several streets had to be blocked off with Charlotte Street from Prince Street cordoned off, while traffic was not allowed up Henry Street.
The Belmont taxi stand located at Queen and Charlotte Streets was moved higher up to Park and Charlotte Streets leaving many with no choice but to walk home.
