A FIRE of unknown origin gutted the two-storey Brahma Kumaris Raja Yoga Centre in Kingston, Georgetown, while two devotees of the organisations were meditating in the wee hours of Friday morning.

According to Fire Chief Marlon Gentle, in the aftermath of the fire, the building was severely damaged.

He explained that the Fire Service received the fire report at 04:34hours and four trucks were dispatched to extinguish the fire.
Gentle added that investigations continue as firemen have not yet been able to ascertain the cause of the fire.

Reports indicate that the centre was also destroyed by fire several years ago.
The building made mostly of wood was used as a center for spiritual and meditation exercises while courses on personal development were also offered.
At the scene, fire fighters initially had problems with accessing sufficient water but managed to contain the blaze to one building.

The two occupants who were in the building at the time of the fire were identified as “Usha” and Parbattie Singh.

They explained that there was a power outage before the fire started while they were meditating and when they realized it was a fire they grabbed what they could and ran to safety on the roadway.

Singh noted that they didn’t take it serious at first but minutes later a blaze was seen from the rear of the building.

According to the security guard at the building, the fire started in the northern side of the building and “all I hear was a crackling sound and I see smoke later then when I check it was a fire.”

Also at the scene were members of the European Union (EU) election observation mission, whose operations are located in a nearby building.