At least five persons are now homeless after a fire last night destroyed a wooden two-storey apartment building at Cross Street, Georgetown.
According to a security guard at the Ashmin’s Trading compound on High Street, the fire started at about 8.30 pm and quickly destroyed the two-storey wooden building. The building was behind the compound. He said that he was not present when the fire started.
At the scene, this newspaper observed that the upper flat of the two-storey building had collapsed as a result of the blaze. Fire-fighters tackled the fire from above by climbing onto the fence of the building and from spots that were not ablaze. Neighbours and bystanders also attempted to tackle the fire from ground level. A shortage of water was also evident and persons assisted by means of a water brigade. A pressure washer was also set up to aid in containing the blaze. By 10:15 pm the firefighters had made several attempts at containing the fire, including the use of water from nearby trenches.
Meanwhile Gary Westmaas, who lived in a section of the building for 11 years, said that the apartment building was engulfed quickly because the building was old. He said that the building was owned by June Momon, 74. He added that the woman and her grandsons lived in the nearby house. Another person rented a section at the lower flat while he stayed in a part connected to
the house. He informed that his section was not damaged.
Westmaas said that the firefighters did a good job at containing the fire, however, neighbours said that the blaze could’ve been extinguished sooner had the water tenders arrived with water.
