An elderly man and his sister are now homeless following a fire which yesterday morning completely destroyed their home at 36 E New Road, Vreed-en-Hoop, West Coast Demerara. The displaced man, Denzil Viedal, 60, told the Guyana Chronicle that he was awakened at about 07:50hrs by his neighbours’ screams for him to vacate the building.
He said that the fire may have been set by his mentally challenged sister, who occupied a shack at the back of the yard.
The woman, Desiree Roberts, was not around when the fire started, but later she was seen roaming the streets of Vreed-en-Hoop.
Viedal told this newspaper that he had been occupying the wooden building for the past 50 years and considered his loss as tremendous, since it was ‘all he had’.
The man stated that he escaped with his life and just the clothes on his back.
Sitting in a neighbour’s house yesterday, sipping tea, he related what took place to his niece and nephew, who showed up after they received news of the fire.
Viedal admitted that he tried having his sister institutionalized, but this did not happen, and then he tried having her admitted as a patient at the Palms.
He suspected that she may have started the blaze which completely destroyed his house and all his belongings, but thanked the Fire Service for their quick response which led to two other houses in the yard being saved.
Viedal noted that he would be staying with his relatives until other arrangements can be made. He was very distraught yesterday since he said he was feeling unwell and had a surgical operation recently.
He said, “If I didn’t know Jesus, I would have flipped out, considering I have lost everything.”
A neighbour, Zaheer Khan, told the Guyana Chronicle yesterday that he was sleeping when he was awakened by his mother saying that a fire was next door and he went into action.
He jumped out of bed and grabbed a fire extinguisher and went outside. But there was little he could do but ensure the elderly man was safe.
He explained that in a few minutes the entire wooden structure was engulfed before the firemen arrived; but was grateful that they saved his house and the others nearby.