–owner says damaged upper flat is a ‘fixable problem,’ tenants count losses

FACED with a complex situation, firefighters were forced to act swiftly and cunningly to save a four-storey building at Lot 248 Duncan Street from being completely ravaged by a fire, which started in the upper flat of the structure.

Although the upper flat of the building, which is owned by Forbes Garraway, was destroyed by the fire of unknown origin, Divisional Officer in Charge of Operations, Andrew Holder, said he was pleased with the work of his team, as they were able to contain the blaze and restrict the fire from spreading to other parts of the building.

Using a hydraulic ladder, the fire service was able to contain the blaze within a few hours, and restrict the spread of the fire.

“The fire department arrived at this address within four minutes. When we got here, the top floor was well alight, and our initial response was to contain the blaze, but we had some major difficulties accessing water with prolonged efforts to access unlimited or open sources of water.

“The closest water source to here is way on Laluni Street, which is a considerable distance from here. We tried to get water from a canal but within minutes that was exhausted,” Holder told reporters at the scene, on Wednesday.

He related that although there were fire hydrants, they were not working.
“Fire hydrants were non-functional. The Fire Service currently is in the mode of inspecting and operationalising hydrants throughout the city, but today the fire hydrants failed us,” Holder lamented.

The situation was even more challenging because of how the building was situated. Being a high-rise building in a residential area, the structure created some complications for firefighters who were trying to access the section where the fire was raging.
Holder said the way the building was constructed is a cause for concern to the fire service.

“Our initial access to the fire was gained by climbing nearby roofs. It was when I got on the scene and got a proper appreciation of what was happening, I immediately called for our specialised vehicle, which is the hydraulic platform with the long ladder, and that is what saved the day,” Holder said.

Garraway related that he was pleased with the firefighting efforts of the fire service, but he, however, had concerns that some of the firefighters were not properly equipped with the necessary protective gears.

This aside, he said that 12 persons have been occupying the building, which also houses the popular Forbes Vulcanising Shop.
While the ground floor housed the “tyre shop,” the other sections of the building were utilised as apartment complexes.

Although no one was injured as a result of the fire, several Venezuelan nationals, who occupied the upper flat of the building, lost much of their belongings.

As the owner of the complex, Garraway said he could not estimate his losses, but he related that the building is insured, and given that only the top flat was destroyed, he is optimistic about repairing the damaged area and restoring his building.

“This is a fixable problem, it’s not a major problem for me. This problem is going to be fixed and I will pick it up and move on from here,” Garraway related.

Occupants of the apartment which was below the section of the building that was destroyed, 22-year-old Alexander Nievezz and 37-year-old Marvelis Diazez, both said that they were not able to save anything immediately.

But they were hopeful that they could still recover some amount of their things when allowed to go back into the building.
The effects of the fire, though not physical, stretched beyond the occupants of the building, as 52-year-old Maureen Khan, who lives next door, was fearful that her house would be destroyed.

“I was so scared. All I was doing was praying for God to take control of this fire. The fire truck tried to out the fire but the fire keep coming and coming again. So I was just praying and trusting God that my house and the house around would be protected,” Khan related.

Her prays were answered and outside of her house being soaked during efforts to extinguish the blaze, no damages were sustained.