Evidence suggests that Regent Street fire might have been electrical - Fire Chief

Evidence suggests that Regent Street fire might have been electrical – Fire Chief

Nov 10, 2020 News

The rubbles which remain from the Regent Street fire

Kaieteur News – As investigations continue into the most recent Regent Street fire, evidence gathered so far indicates that it might have been of electrical origin. This is according to Fire Chief, Marlon Gentle who spoke Kaieteur News yesterday.
He added that the Guyana Fire Service (GFS) is working along with City Engineer and the Government Electrical Inspectorate to conclude its investigations.
This media house reported yesterday that it was Dhoray’s Fashion which had caught fire. However, during a subsequent return to the scene it was noted that that two other buildings were destroyed instead. One of them housed Fazim’s Variety store and Samtronix while the other was a makeshift wooden, plastic and zinc shed erected next door on the plot of land where once stood the Sachi variety store.
According to Gentle, it is believed that the fire might have started in the makeshift shed and then spread to the nearby building. Eyewitnesses, he said, recalled seeing sparks coming from the shed just before the fire began.
Sources close to investigation said that a temporary electrical circuit board was set up at the location for electricity to be channeled into the shed. It was also revealed that so far there is no evidence suggesting that the City Council or the relevant authorities were consulted by the authorities to set up the circuit board.
It is believed that the board might have been faulty and not on par with the required safety standards and could be the cause of the blaze.
Kaieteur News learnt that goods were also transported to the shed between Friday and Saturday. The respective owners were expected to open the building for business to cash in on customers making Christmas purchases.
Guyoil Staffers had told Kaieteur that the blaze commenced at around 20:00 hrs.
A loud explosion was heard, followed by flames seen emanating from one of the buildings in close proximity to the Guyoil Gas Station. One of the staffers called the fire department immediately. They then proceeded to shut down the fuel pumps before evacuating the gas station.