By Jared Liddell

TWO nationals of China perished and millions of dollars have been lost in a fire that completely destroyed a number of commercial buildings at the Vreed-en-Hoop junction, West Coast Demerara, just after midnight on Sunday.

The identities of the Chinese males remained unknown up to press time. The fire completely destroyed three buildings which comprised a total of seven businesses.

Persons residing in proximity to the commercial buildings said they were awakened by the loud and constant barking of dogs in the area and the blaring siren of a fire tender.
Jagash Mangal told reporters that he was prompted to look outside due to the non-stop barking of his dogs. “I checked the cameras to see what happened but I didn’t see anything until I look out and see the thick, thick smoke,” Mangal told reporters.

Upon realising that a building was on fire, Mangal wasted no time in calling the emergency line – 911. “I dialled 911 right away but the phone keep ringing out, so I called La Grange Station, then I called the fire service and GPL, because I was concerned that the fire might catch the electricity wires,” he related. That was around 1:30hrs on Sunday.

Another resident told reporters that she was awakened by the sound of the siren in the area. “When I got up, the firefighters were trying to control the fire but it was too big for them. I got so scared that I grabbed up all my important documents and woke my children and ran out the house,” the woman said. With two buildings already in flames, the resident was concerned that her house would have been affected.

Fire Chief Marlon Gentle told the Guyana Chronicle that upon receiving the call, the Guyana Fire Service quickly dispatched fire tenders to the area.

“We got a call at 1:56am. Units were mobilised from La Grange, West Ruimveldt and West Demerara and the first two areas to get there were La Grange and West Ruimveldt; they immediately went into action. Total fire control took about 40-45 minutes to really establish control of the fire and prevent it from spreading, because on their arrival two buildings were already engulfed and a third was just beginning to ignite, which was the building east and west of the supermarket,” the fire chief explained. .

He said that evidence suggests that the fire started in the supermarket, which was housed in one of the three buildings. He explained that based on the initial investigation, the owner of the supermarket and an electrician, on Saturday, were attempting to repair a faulty appliance.

“There is evidence showing [that] the fire started in the supermarket. There’s indication that it started from a walk-in freezer in the supermarket. Somewhere in that area the fire started,” he said. It is believed that the two Chinese men resided in the supermarket.

Gentle told this newspaper that the firefighters worked expeditiously to ensure that the fire was contained and controlled in the shortest possible time. Their efforts, he said, were successful, notwithstanding the challenges faced as a result of the materials and chemicals that were stored in the two buildings which had the potential of creating a more hostile environment when mixed with water.

He noted too, the number of businesses that occupied the small space was also a contributing factor to the magnitude of the fire. Gentle confirmed that the three buildings housed a total of seven different businesses.