A Sophia, Greater Georgetown couple along with four other family members are now homeless after a fire of unknown origin gutted their home on Monday.
Umawattie Premraj called “Chinee” along with her husband, Sasenarine Singh, who is confined to a wheelchair, resided in their two-storey wooden home at Lot 45 North Sophia, Greater Georgetown. Reports are the fire started at about 12:30h.
The distraught woman told Inews that she had just returned home with her grandchild, whom she usually babysits, and was reading a document from the child’s school when neighbours alerted her of the fire.
“She got a piece of slip in her bag and while reading this slip the boy call and tell me my kitchen on fire upstairs. So I told him that I don’t cook upstairs but he kept saying my kitchen is on fire. So when I get up and I look I see the whole top on fire and the only thing I could do is scramble my husband and bring him out and start hollering and a man come and collect my husband and then I went back for the child,” Premraj said.
She stated that her husband’s right leg was amputated and as a result, their daughter and son-in-law were living with them temporarily to assist them.
“Since he had his surgery, we always downstairs and that is where we usually are. I don’t know what caused the fire. As for where we are going to stay from now, I really don’t know either.”
Premraj added that the fire destroyed all of her and her husband’s valuables and clothing.
“All the room have wardrobes, three bedrooms, wall dividers, computer, television upstairs, stove, freezer, my fridge, everything is gone. The only clothing I could have saved is what I am wearing right now. I can’t say what really happened to cause this fire,” she lamented.
Premraj noted that by the time the Guyana Fire Service arrived to the scene, her home was almost burnt to the ground.
