House destroyed by fire as 911 calls go unanswered; two arrested for looting

By Kurt Campbell

[www.inewsguyana.com] – An early morning fire in Deobrian Street, Prashad Nagar destroyed a house and scorched a neighboring building while at the same time rendering two persons homeless.

Fire Chief Marlon Gentle, in an invited comment said the service received the call at about 07:00hrs on Monday, March 10 and responded immediately, managing to partially save the lower flat of the two storey house and neighboring houses.

According to Gentle, preliminary investigations have so far suggested that the fire may be of an electrical nature.

Meanwhile, the male occupant of the home Robert Power, who lived with a female companion, said he saw smoke coming from the ceiling in the last bedroom at about 06:45hrs and alerted residents in the area who quickly came to his assistance.

There were complains that calls to the emergency number 911 went unanswered. Residents say they then made contact with the police who then called the fire service.

On this note, the Fire Chief while recalling a similar incident recently reiterated that the fire service number is 912. He said firefighters did the best they could to save the building, which was mostly wood.

Meanwhile, Powers is also claiming losses from the little he managed to save from the house. Among the items missing are a laptop and other technological devices. Two persons have since been arrested by the police for looting the burning building.