About 25 buildings gutted, some 40 persons homeless
Millions of dollars went up in smoke at Mahdia Region 8 (Potaro/Siparuni) and lives were threatened last night when several business and dwelling houses in the  main shopping area  known as the Arcade were razed to the ground by a fire of suspected electrical origin. The area wiped out was described as the shopping area in the vicinity of the monument in Central Mahdia. Up to reporting time, it was estimated that at least twenty business places, mainly one storeyed buildings  which served as shops and eating houses and at least one multimillion dollar mini-mall owned by Mahdia Businessman Roger Hinds had been destroyed.

There were no reports of any casualties  but with the fire still blazing  all sources of information on the ground could say was they were just  hopeful that everyone had managed to escape the blaze.
There are so far no accurate number of those left homeless but reliable sources said this could be in excess of 40 persons, comprising   adults and children.
Residents said that the blaze was virtually uncontrollable from beginning to end, there being no fire tender or easily accessible source of water for fire fighting within the community.
The fire fighting was limited to the use of barrels of water filled from a creek some distance away and then loaded on to trucks and transported to the scene. The fire pretty much had its own way for nearly two hours before some amount of control was achieved, residents said.

The tremendous heat kept “bucket brigaders” at bay for nearly two hours.
Regional Chairman of Region 8, Senor Bell, speaking from the area last night, said that urgent Central Government assistance was needed because the dozens of homeless had been left with nothing other than the clothing on their backs.
“This is a major disaster. Too many buildings destroyed. Too many people affected. The Regional Administration cannot deal with this alone. This is above our heads” he said.
Reports stated that the conflagration started in a building in the heart of the Arcade near to a business place owned by Roger Hinds.

 

An eye- witness said that a plume of smoke was followed by an explosion and the blaze quickly engulfed the several wooden buildings in the mall.
It raged unabated for nearly an hour and a half before slowing largely because of a lack of additional flammable materials and to some extent the spirited efforts of the bucket brigade, residents said.
Ironically, it was only three days ago that Prime Minister Samuel Hinds and a team from the Guyana Geology and Mines Commission had visited Mahdia, listening to the concerns of miners and residents.
The Prime Minister had told the miners that their commitment and efforts had contributed significantly to ensuring that the economy remains strong.
(with additional reporting by Wendella Davidson)