Six homeless following South Ruimveldt Shopping Plaza blaze

Feb 14, 2015 News

Pandemonium broke out yesterday morning after a fire started in an apartment at the South Ruimveldt Gardens shopping plaza.
Persons were worried the blaze would have spread to other apartments that are only separated by a wall. Fortunately, the members of the Guyana Fire Service were able to contain the fire and prevented further losses.
On the less fortunate side, the blaze left six persons homeless. The family was only able to save a refrigerator, a stove and a chair set. “We lost everything else, we computers, music set, beds, documents, everything,” said Ingrid Wilkinson as she fought desperately to control her emotions.
Wilkinson lived at the Plaza for over 20 years with her reputed husband, Compton Williams, aka “Ras Como,” her daughter and her grand children. Como lived there for over 30 years.
Wilkinson told Kaieteur News that she had just exited the bathroom and was in her bedroom getting dressed when she was alerted that a fire had started.
She said that it was her daughter who alerted her of the mishap. “She come telling me, Fire! Fire in the bedroom…I just run out, run put on the pump, get water out the bathroom and throw but it just would not stop it just keep blazing. “
Wilkinson said that she has not the slightest clue about how the fire started but said that a high possibility exists that it could have been electrical in origin.
The distraught woman lamented the fact that the fire, which she said started around 10:00hrs could have been contained earlier if the fire tender had arrived prepared to fight the fire.
She said that aside from the fact that the truck took some time to arrive; and then turned up without water.
Wilkinson expressed that she was absolutely thankful for the assistance she had from drivers attached to Green Ice Taxi Service, located in the vicinity.
She said that they tried to put out the fire in its initial stages and helped her get items out of the burning apartment.
Kaieteur News asked Wilkinson about the whereabouts of her two young grandchildren—ages three and one—when the fire started. Before she could have responded, her neighbour said “they went downstairs playing.”
But this is contrary to the information given by one of the taxi drivers who assisted during the fire.
The driver, who identified himself as Brandis, said that he was alerted about the fire when he heard a commotion and then saw “the li’l children running downstairs” and that is when he and two other drivers ran to assist the best they could.
In listening to the whispering crowd, Kaieteur News heard that the fire started when one of the toddlers set a mattress alight.
However, this is still to be confirmed after the Guyana Fire Service carry out its investigations.
Wilkinson’s immediate neighbor, Monica Deterin, told Kaieteur News that she saw the smoke “and I holler out for her (Wilkinson) but like she de done see it and she started panicking…next thing I say was that de fire would a come over because de fire truck tek a li’l time to come and de fire burn from the roof.”
The woman who has lived there since 1984 said that most of her stuff would have been damaged even though the fire was prevented from spreading to her apartment “I aint go back and see yet but de water mussy destroy nuff thing.”
After most people started crowding Wilkinson, an unidentified man who resides at the Plaza decided to take control of the situation. In a loud tone of voice, the man said, “Yall humble nah, move from around she, give she space to breathe… After a storm is a calm, where is yall faith; humble. You (Wilkinson) husband alive, ya children and ya grandchildren alive humble nah…aya stop crowding she these thing is happen it will happen.”
As Wilkinson tried to stop her tears from flowing, another resident went to her and said, “remember today is Friday de 13th…just keep the faith.”

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Six homeless following South Ruimveldt Shopping Plaza blaze

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