INVESTIGATIONS into last Wednesday’s fire that gutted the historic Umana Yana have concluded that its origin was electrical.

Divisional Operations Officer of the Guyana Fire Service, Mr. Compton Sparman, said that, based on investigations, a wire on a post at the top of the structure had burst, and the heavy winds then blowing caused the wire to spark, thus causing the origin of the fire, which then made its way to the stage of the Umana Yana.

He said that two security guards who were performing duties at the Umana Yana attempted to put out the fire by using the two extinguishers available; but because the fire had originated so high up the structure, their efforts had failed and the entire structure was gutted.

“After the security tried to out the fire and they failed because of the height, they were injured and taken to the Georgetown Hospital for medical treatment,” Sparman said.

Speaking with the Chronicle, one of the security officers who had been performing duties at the time of the fire said he had heard a loud noise, and when he had looked into the edifice, he had seen the burst wire sparking.

“When the wire started to spark, we tried to out it by using the extinguisher, but the carbon wasn’t reaching the top; so, in two minutes’ (time), the entire structure was on fire. If we had the extinguisher with foam in it, maybe it could have been better,” the security official said.

Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Dr. Frank Anthony, has given assurance that the Umana Yana is to be rebuilt shortly.
However, a definitive date has not yet been decided, because members of the Wai Wai tribe of Indigenous Peoples who had constructed the original structure would have to come and give an estimated cost before it could be included in the 2015 National Budget.

Minister Anthony said the Wai Wais would, from time to time, have done repairs to the structure. He said they are the experienced ones, and the trees that yield the branches used to construct the benab are not grown in Georgetown.

“We will have to contact the Wai Wais through the Ministry of Amerindian Affairs for them to come give us an estimated cost. They will also have to go into St. Cuthbert’s Mission, which is on the (Linden) highway, for them to get the special leaves,” Minister Anthony said.

Just after the historic structure had been razed on Wednesday, Minister Anthony had told the media that funds for its re-construction would be included in the 2015 National Budget.

He had also described the fiery destruction of the Umana Yana as a devastating loss to the nation, and had said that that devastation was all the more felt during the month when Amerindians were celebrating their heritage.

(By Asif Hakim)