A fire suspected to have been caused by arson completely destroyed the century-old St. Patrick’s Anglican Church in Rose Hall, East Canje Berbice yesterday morning.
The Divisional Officer for the Guyana Fire Service, Clive Mc Donald told reporters in Region Six that they received a report around 4.30 am yesterday of the ongoing fire.
He said two fire tenders were dispatched immediately to the location where it was discovered that the building was completely engulfed in flames. “Immediately we went into action to suppress and stop the spread of fire. Open water was sourced just right there nearby.”
He noted that it was a sad day for Guyana’s history given that the building was just over 100 years old.
“It is our belief that that fire based upon my experience and my knowledge in firefighting that the fire was in that building a pretty long time”, he said.
He added that “It is sad to note that we have lost a historical building in Region Six.”
According to him, they would have discovered the origin of the fire and preliminary investigations “are showing (it was) deliberate.”
He added that the building was not in use for over 5 – 6 months and had no electricity supply.
