FIRE yesterday completely destroyed a house at William Street, Kitty, Georgetown, leaving several persons homeless and millions of dollars in losses.
The Guyana Fire Service (GFS) has once again come in for criticism for their tardiness and the lack of sufficient water to fight the fire.
The fire-fighters were aided by several young men, including a brave Guyana Defence Force Officer Private Kester Austin, who bravely ran into an adjacent building which had caught fire to assist persons to get out and save whatever items they could.

Wayne Griffith, one of the residents who lived in the building which was destroyed, said he first realised there was a fire while next door where he was taking a nap. The fire started shortly after 18:00 hrs.
According to Griffith, he became aware of the fire only when somebody knocked at the door to alert him to it.
Griffith said he had left a friend boiling plantains on the stove.
The persistence of the fire-fighters and public-spirited citizens ensured that the house next door was saved.
When the Guyana Chronicle arrived on the scene about twenty minutes after the fire started, fire-fighters were seen battling the flames. But, that truck ran out of water and another was called to the scene.
The absence of water stalled the firemen, and after they realised that the house was already lost, they concentrated their efforts on the house next door. Now armed with a hose from the other truck, they continued fighting the flames of the house ensuring that it did not spread to another building.
Public spirited persons formed a water brigade to put out the fire.
Charles (only name given) was one of the occupants of the neighbouring house. He explained that he was at home watching television, when he saw the approaching firetruck and he realised the house next door was on fire.
Charles explained that indeed a man was at the house cooking, but was under the influence of alcohol and may have left the stove on and the pot to boil over.
Relatives of the occupants of the house openly wept, as hundreds of persons converged on the scene to see what was happening.
Workers of the Guyana Power and Light (GPL) were also quick to respond to the scene, and disconnected the electrical wire to all the nearby houses.
The firefighters were able to contain the fire after almost two hours.