…businessmen lose millions in early morning blaze
AN early morning fire yesterday, at Regent and Wellington Streets, Lacytown, Georgetown, razed one of several stores housed in the Jaigobin Rajkumar Building operated by several Indian nationals, resulted in millions of dollars in losses. The fire, unknown in origin, ripped through Dilip’s Variety Store and scorched Raf’s Variety Store.
The other stores, operated mostly by Indian nationals, are owned by a Guyanese, Smart Choice Store, were left water-soaked.
The affected stores, Dilip’s Variety Store, Akash Variety Store, Prakash Discount Store, Manu’s Variety Store and Monty’s Variety Store, were housed in the same building located opposite the GUYOIL Gas Station.
Smart Choice was water-soaked and employees were yesterday observed fetching items from the store as firemen continued to douse the embers.

Meanwhile, Chief Fire Officer Marlon Gentle, who was one on the scene yesterday, said that the Guyana Fire Service received the fire call at 05:35hrs and initially, two fire tenders and a tanker responded from the Central and Alberttown Fire Stations.
He added that two more fire tenders, a tanker and the hydraulic platform joined the firefighting efforts at the scene and was successful in containing the blaze to one building.
Gentle stated that the fire started in the bottom flat of Dilip’s Variety Store, somewhere around the middle of the building at the corner of Regent and Wellington Streets.
He however, could not give the cause of the fire, and said nothing could be ruled out until investigations are completed.
He added that the Jaigobin building, which is a wooden structure, housed several small stores operated by Indian nationals, and they were all water-soaked.
The Fire Chief observed that the building was heavily grilled and shuttered with quarter-inch steel plates.
He defended accusations from some businessmen that the firefighters did not enter the building from which heavy smoke was pouring, as this would have compromised their safety.
They concentrated mostly on containing the blaze.

Gentle noted that the stores had in stock flammable contents such as clothing, perfumes, sprays, aerosols among other things.
Gentle pointed out that scores of fire fighters went into action to save the nearby buildings, while police
set up barricades and controlled curious onlookers.

At the scene, Vivekenand Gansham, the brother of the owner of the Jaigobin building, Vidushi Ramkumar, told reporters there is a property dispute in the courts for about three years now. The property was supposed to be “split up” among 12 siblings.
Proprietor of Dilip’s Variety Store, Dilip Murjani, yesterday told reporters that he received a call that his store was on fire and thought at first that it was an April fool’s joke. But he later saw his business ablaze.
Murjani said he had been a tenant there for eight years, and estimates his loss at just under G$20M.
Another store owner, Mehul Jariwala, of Monty’s Variety Store, said that his store was completely water-soaked, as he was in the process removing what stocks he could, as thick smoke billowed from a nearby store.