Fire destroys GNSC workshop

Jan 31, 2022 News

Scenes at the GNSC Wharf yesterday.

Kaieteur News – An early morning fire destroyed a workshop at the Guyana National Shipping Company (GNSC) Wharf‘s Lombard Street, Georgetown.
According to an eyewitness, the fire started around 08:25 hours. This newspaper learnt that the old wooden building known as the “gear room” was being used to store spare parts for ships. Commissioner of Police, Nigel Hoppie told reporters at the scene that the fire service was able to contain the blaze. For his part, Home Affairs Minister Robeson Benn was quoted, in a Newsroom Guyana report, as saying that he was satisfied with the response by the Guyana Fire Service.
Meanwhile, the Guyana Fire Service in a statement said it is currently investigating the circumstances which led to the fire. In its statement, the Fire Department said it was made aware of the blaze at 8:12 hrs and water tenders from the Central, Alberttown and West Ruimveldt Fire Stations along with Fire Boat ‘Protector 8’ were immediately dispatched to the Lot 5-6 Lombard Street, Georgetown location.
Also present at the scene was an ambulance and crew from the Guyana Fire and Rescue Service and the Police. As a result of the fire, a workshop and gear room which were housed in the same building on the premises were destroyed. “Three jets working from Water Tender 107, using relay from Fire Boat ‘Protector 8’, one jet from WT106 and one jet from WT76 using relay from WT112 all working from an open water source were used to extinguish the blaze,” the statement added.
Investigations are ongoing to determine what caused the fire.
The Fire Prevention Department is slated to conduct Fire Prevention inspections later this week with the GNSC. This is being done with the aim of putting ample passive and active fire suppression systems in place to prevent and reduce the outbreak of fires at these facilities, the fire service noted.
“The Guyana Fire service repeats its call for the appropriate fire prevention and response measures to be put in place to avoid the loss of private and public buildings and to avoid the risk of injury and loss of life,” the statement concluded.
It was only two weeks ago that fire destroyed Laparkan Shipping Company bond next to the GNIC wharf and Benn expressed concerns about the trend.
Acting Fire Chief, Gregory Wickham told reporters that the fire was deliberately set, although investigation is currently ongoing, and no one has been arrested to date. The bond was engulfed in flames destroying millions of dollars’ worth of imported vehicles and goods. Wickham told this newspaper that his investigators found that the cause of the blaze was a ‘malicious act’.
He detailed that they were able to determine this by thorough investigations which included the reviewing of CCTV footage. The findings, he said has since been handed over to police investigators to continue the investigations. “Our duty is to find out the cause of the fire. Catching suspects and bringing them to justice will be the responsibility of the Guyana police force”, Wickham said.
Kaieteur News understands that the act was perpetrated by more than one person and police are looking for them. Meanwhile, Benn has been lamenting the lack of fire safety measures at most business places, something he indicated is required by law.