Fire at BELARGO Enterprise in Buttonwood Bay

Voice of: Margaret Usher

There was a fire this afternoon at Belargo Enterprise, a gift shop in the Buttonwood Bay area of Belize City. An employee of the business told us that she heard a popping sound and they tried to reach the Belize Electricity Limited, but only got through to an automated recording instead of someone who could assist. Margaret Usher said that by the time they finally got through for assistance, the fire had already engulfed the building.

Voice of: Margaret Usher, Resident, Buttonwood Bay

“Mr. Largo office, the printing office, I work over there and this afternoon at 1:00 when I went back to work, me and his son were in the office and all of a sudden we hear “pop, pop.” And I said this does not sound right. Let me try to get the Electricity Board. I called the Electricity Board, the number said go to one, go to two, go to three. We try fi get the fire service. The fire service has to go through police and go through a whole lot of things. I don’t understand why that, but that is the operating system. Finally, when the house under blaze we finally managed to get the Electricity Board where they come and cut the wire from up top there. But the fire started in the left side of the house, where all the batteries and generators are. That’s where the fire started because afterwards we were in there and the son said he could not stand the fumes, so let’s go outside. I said let’s go outside but I don’t want to go outside because I want to know what caused the popping. The Electricity Board didn’t come, the fire service didn’t come til long afterwards when the whole house was on fire, then the fire service come.”

Reporter

“Around what time would you say that they got here?”

Voice of: Margaret Usher

“Honestly and truly, my brother, I don’t even know because we just rushed out. I’d say about after two. Because I got there 1:00; twenty past one and we were still in there, so it was after two. The fire service never come til about two-thirty, three.”