Relatives combing the debris to see if they could salvage anything.

FIRE believed to be electrical in nature ripped through two houses in the same yard at Cove and John, East Coast Demerara yesterday morning, leaving three persons homeless.

Displaced are Jasmattie Rambhajan, 74, and her two grandchildren, Mahadeo and Gopaul Rambhajan, 19 and 23 respectively, who were so traumatised, they had to be taken to the hospital.

Both lads reportedly collapsed on seeing the destruction the fire had wrought. Their grandmother, who was also shaken by what had transpired, had to be taken to her daughter’s house a few yards away, where she was helped into a hammock.

The elderly Jasmattie Rambhajan being consoled by relatives yesterday.

The woman, who relatives said was discharged from the hospital just recently and was on the road to recovery, was reportedly in the lower flat of the two-storey house when she was alerted by neighbours that there was a fire on the upper flat.

The fire, which started around 10:00h, quickly spread and engulfed the entire building, and also spread to the house immediately behind, leaving that too almost inhabitable. Both houses belonged to the one family.

Hemwattie Manohar, 30, who confirmed that the fire started in the front house, which had four bedrooms, and spread to the one behind, said the family did not get a chance to save anything. She said that thanks to their neighbours, they were able to bring the fire under some semblance of control until a tender from the Guyana Fire Service (GFS) arrived on the scene.

The burnt-out houses yesterday. (Photos by Adrian Narine)

Yesterday, the elderly homeowner was in tears and had to be consoled by her relatives, at whom she will be staying until her affairs are sorted out.

Meanwhile, the GFS was also called to douse several grass fires yesterday too.

The first one was reported at La Bonne intention (LBI), on the East Coast, while another was at Bachelor’s Adventure, also on the East Coast. The others were at Celina’s Resort, just off Vlissengen Road on the Kitty Seawall; an empty plot of land at Quamina and East Streets, here in the city; and at Bishop’s High School, also in the city.