FIVE persons were dealt a blow to their Christmas celebration on Friday when fire ripped through their home located at Sideline Dam, Middle Road La Penitence.

In addition, one adjacent home in which five other persons also lived saw the occupants of that building suffering water damage to personal appliances and other belongings and they seem to be temporarily displaced.
This newspaper was told that no one was at home at the time the fire started, even though persons in the area reported that a pot was left on a stove unattended. No one from the fire service was immediately available to say on the basis of preliminary investigations, what may have caused the fire.

The Guyana Chronicle was also told by one resident that the fire might have also been electrical in origin, since the home is not powered by the Guyana Power and Light Company but still had electricity and some electrical appliances.
Speaking yesterday was a neighbour, who had to remove her items from her home when the fire started, Marcelle Wilbert explained that she was at work when she received a call that the home behind hers was on fire and that she needed to come home quickly.
The woman said that when she arrived the fire was almost under control, even as the owner for the burning house could not be located.
One woman said that the house could have been saved had the fire tenders responded more quickly. Another female resident said that she was first alerted to the smoke and

when she rushed out, she noticed that a house was on fire but by the time she could rush from the short distance she lived to where the fire was; the building was already completely destroyed. The home was made of wood and concrete.