FORTY-NINE year old Jeffery Mc Kellawan also know as “Cuffy” on Tuesday narrowly escaped being burnt to death after his all-in-one shack went up in fames at Palin Street, ‘B’ Field, Sophia. The man said that he is not aware of how the fire started as he was asleep, and when he awoke and saw smoke. The man said that nothing in his house was left based on his recollection and that his little shack had, among other things, a stove, a microwave oven, and a television. He said that he also lost his bicycle in the blaze.
One resident who spoke to the media said that he noticed the smoke and subsequently saw fire emanating from the all-in-one building, and he rushed to see if he could have put out the blaze. The youth said that as he got closer to the home he realised that the occupant was still in the building and appeared to be trapped.
The young man who gave his name as Danesh Rampersaud said that he was forced to remove the hinges from the house door and pull the man to safety. He said that after pulling the occupant out of the smoke-filled building, the man collapsed and had to be dragged to the road to avoid being burnt.
McKellawan was pleading with the residents to call an ambulance to take him to the hospital. He cried out for pains about the body and head. He also had burning sensations as he was scorched about his body and limbs.
The Guyana Chronicle was informed that the fire may have started at approximately 12:50 hours yesterday. The house was receiving electricity from the Guyana Power and Light company. Yesterday a crew from the company was in the area disconnecting the power supply to the building.
The Guyana Fire Service responded with one fire tender and was seen pumping water from a nearby drain to contain the small fire, which was not a threat to nearby buildings.
However, residents used the opportunity to raise their concern about the state of the ‘B’ Field access road, which continues to be a bugbear to commuters and a hazard in the event of an emergency. One man said that it would have taken the fire tender a shorter time to reach the scene had the road been in a proper state.
Added to that, there are residents who pile dirt and other land building materials on the road and street shoulders that hamper the free flow of vehicular traffic going through the Sophia community. Yesterday was one such case where a quantity of dirt covered almost half of the street preventing the fire tender from getting past a certain point to reach the blaze.