An overseas-based Guyanese is now counting his losses as fire, believed to be electrical in origin, destroyed his Gy$30 million home at Lot 260B Fifth Avenue, Subryanville on Monday morning.
The engulfed Fifth Street, Subryanville house
Mervyn Butts, 68, told the media that he left his house at approximately 07: 20h to take a female friend and her daughter to work and school, and on his way back he received a call informing him that his house was on fire.
“I wasn’t at home at the time this fire started. I got the message while I was on the road; I got a call from a friend that the place is on fire, so I drove up and I saw the fire… at about 8: 15- 8: 30h.” He said he lives alone in the upper flat of the two-storey building, while the bottom flat is rented by Brian (only name given).
“When I came down he was gone, I understand he is in Berbice,” Butts told the media.
He could not say how the fire started, but was sure that it was no fault of his. ” I am not sure where it started, but what I was hearing from the guy next door he said he saw the fire in the kitchen; but what I can tell you, yesterday afternoon at about five o’clock when I was sitting out there, there was an electrical arc up from the meter; this house is wired 110V-220V.”
He added that he began living in the house only one month ago as he lived in the United States for more than 35 years.
“I would want to suspect that it is electrical… yesterday, I hear pow, I didn’t see anything, I didn’t smell anything; last night, I sat on the veranda up to about 10 o’clock the lights were all on, the TV was on. I didn’t leave anything on: I turned off the gas stove, when I am finished with the electrical equipment I pull the plugs out, and I don’t leave them on,” Butts added.
He said his neighbour told him that he saw the fire in his kitchen before it spread throughout the house. The visibly shaken man said he doesn’t know how the fire could have started in his kitchen as all appliances were off.
“I figure with all the apparatus and personal equipment, effects that I got in there it would be close to Gy$5 million because I brought everything in there from the States and the value of the property is about Gy$27-30 million.… The guy downstairs got stuff – substantial loss.” He is eagerly awaiting the report from the Guyana Fire Service on the cause of the fire. “Well, I want to find out after the report is submitted… if the cause is electrical, we got to talk to GPL, because they would be the people – nothing on my part, then something has to be done.”
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