A HOUSE at Lot 55 First Alley, Wismar, Linden, Region 10, owned by Marverine Brewley, 99, and occupied by Joel Brewley, 66, was on Sunday ravaged by fire suspected to be electrical in origin.
According to a release from the Guyana Fire Service, an electrical power surge reportedly caused substandard electrical wiring to overheat, which caused the thermostat of the refrigerator to fail and subsequently overheated the compressor which ignited nearby combustible materials.
The Guyana Fire Service said that at 11:44hrs, it was alerted to the fire at Lot 55 First Alley, Wismar, Linden and Water Tender #99 and Water Bowser #12 from the Linden Fire Station were immediately dispatched to the location.
However, the tenders were unable to save the building.
The blaze also affected a two-storey wooden and concrete house located at Lot 58 First Alley, Wismar, Linden, owned by Dannly Saul, 87, and occupied by himself and family of nine.
“Five metres of the Southern wall was severely damaged due to radiated heat from the building of origin. Two lines from Water Tender # 99 tank supply, along with relay from Water Bowser #12 operating from open source were used to extinguish the fire,” the Fire Service said and reminded citizens to be cautious and to follow safety measures to prevent the occurrence of fires.
Some of these include ensuring all appliances are turned off and unplugged before leaving a room or building; never leave children unattended or within the reach of fire starters and flammable items;
never leave cooking unattended; always keep children a safe distance from the cooking area; desist from overloading electrical sockets, for example, overloading of drop cords and power strips with various appliances; and making sure the quality of wires are of the approved and recommended standard when wiring homes or businesses.
The Guyana Fire Service is also recommending the installation of smoke detectors and the use of fire extinguishers in homes and businesses, so that persons can be prepared and alerted in the event of a fire.
