Fourteen people, among them eight children and an amputee, were left homeless after a fire destroyed three apartments in Debe yesterday.
The cause of the fire, which occurred at a five apartment complex building at Ghandi Village, has not yet been ascertained.
Wiping away tears, single parent Vashti Samoocharan, 44, a domestic worker, said the fire started in her bedroom.
She recalled that she had just taken a midday bath and was sitting on couch with her son combing her hair.
“All of a sudden I hear boom. I thought it was somebody bussing fireworks. When I watch outside I saw smoke not knowing that in the bedroom by me had fire. I don’t know how it start. When I open the door the whole bedroom was already blazing. I could not get to save anything. All I could do was grab my son, my two grandson and run outside,” she said.
They were alone home. She lived their with her two sons, ages five and 11.
She had no idea where her family would be spending the night.
Another tenant, Guyanese Aliema Mobin was home with her four children, ages six, three, two and 16 months.
While feeding her baby a bottle she heard two noises. She paid no attention to it, but soon after she heard a loud explosion.
Mobin said she ran outside and saw Samoocharan’s front window in the front room on fire.
Mobin she was unable to retrieve any items for her young children
She was unable to reach her husband Nankumar Persaud, 38, who was at work because his cellphone had discharged. Mobin said she and her husband recently bought about $150,000 worth of clothes, including bridal outfits, shoes and jewelry to open a business in Guyana next month.
She was unable to save anything.
The apartment of wheelchair bound stroke victim Dan Singh, 72, was also destroyed.
Singh, a diabetic, who lived alone, has health complications. He is partially blind, part of his right foot is amputated and he cannot straighten his right hand or fingers.
Singh said a neighbour was at his (Singh’s) home when they heard a loud noise. His neighbour ran outside to inquire where the noise came from. She said another neighbour rescued him from the house.