BUSINESSMAN Noel Shewjattan is counting his losses after a fire of unknown origin destroyed the upper flat of his two-storey house at Lot 178, Durabana Square, Lamaha Gardens around 11:00hrs on Tuesday.

Shewjattan, who is the proprietor of Auto Fashion, was out of Georgetown with his family, but his relative, Sharda Veeren-Chand and Guyana Fire Service Divisional Officer, Gregory Wickham said only the maid was at home at the time.

“We got the call, and we responded with three tenders… When we arrived, we noticed that the top floor of the structure was fully engulfed, so firefighters went into operation,” said Wickham in an invited comment.

He said the Fire Service received information that the maid was in the house at the time of the fire, but she was on the lower flat.

Speaking more about the information he received, Wickham said: “She (the maid) heard a booming sound coming from the top floor, and when she got upstairs, she saw fire coming from one of the rooms. And that’s where the firefighters started before they got the fire under control.

“Kudos to GWI for allowing us to access the fire hydrant, and get water… We were not hindered because of the lack of water.”

He said the team of firefighters employed the routine system to ensure that the blaze did not spread to neighbouring houses, by surrounding the house at three different points.
After containing the fire, the firefighters conducted regular investigations to ascertain the cause of the fire, which, though unconfirmed, is suspected to be of electrical origin. Investigations are still ongoing.

Preliminary investigations, however, revealed that the fire started in a front room on the upper flat of the house. The contents of the top floor were completely destroyed, Wickham said.

Veeren-Chand said Tuesday that the Shewjattans were notified about the incident, and were expected to be back in Georgetown by the end of the day.