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Fire guts section of Skeldon Market
Kaieteur News – Pandemonium reigned at the Skeldon Market on the Corentyne, Berbice on Monday night as a fire of unknown origin gutted a section of the facility, burning millions in losses in its wake.
The interior of the Skeldon market on fire
The Skeldon Market on fire (Photo: Action News)
The fire, according to reports, was observed at the back of the market around 19:00hrs last evening.
Several stalls were destroyed, including two grocery stores within the market. It is unclear how the fire started but vendors and stall owners were angry at the response time of members of the Guyana Fire Service.
They said that the firefighters took a while to arrive at the scene and while at the scene, the firemen ran out of water several times.
Nevertheless, firefighters were able to contain the fire and prevented it from spreading throughout the entire market.
While the firemen took a while to arrive, stall holders and first responders formed bucket brigades to extinguish the blaze. At the same time, stall holders used hammers and other tools to break into their stalls to save their goods.
In addition, there are reports that several persons attempted to loot stalls at the facility as the market was engulfed in flames.
“This is a sad moment for Skeldon Market, a lot of people got losses here tonight,” a resident noted.
Around 20:00hrs, sections of the roof of the market collapsed even as the firemen fought the blaze.
According to Anil Sugrim, a member of the Corriverton Town Council, the market rakes in at least $3 million in earnings monthly from vendors for the Corriverton town council.
He told Benchop Radio from the scene on Monday night that some time ago, an official of the GFS made a proposal that the town council for a fire hydrant to be placed at the back of the market. He said normally the firemen would wash the market, and as such, the fire official made the proposal for the hydrant to be placed at the southern section of the facility.
However, the mayor objected to the idea, and instead he proposed that the hydrant be placed at the roadside at the front of the market.
Up to press time firefighters were still on the ground ensuring that the fire was fully extinguished as members of the Guyana Police Fore maintained order at the scene.
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