House gutted by flames in Orange Walk

While that pilot can walk home to his house following the incident, twelve persons in Orange Walk have no home to return to, following their moment with disaster. A fire on Dangriga Street in Orange Walk Town totally destroyed the Arzu family home. According to a neighbor, Indora Armstrong, the community came out to assist the family with cleaning up after the damage, but they lost everything. News Five spoke to Armstrong.

Via Phone: Indora Armstrong, Neighbor of Fire Victims

Indora Armstrong

“About seven-thirty or so, my mom said there was a fire. I got out of the house and then I saw between the houses and in front of me, I saw high blazing fire. I said maybe it is just a bush fire, but then my sister walked down a bit more and then she said it’s Miss Elswith Arzu’s house on fire. I got out of the house and I run through one of my neighbor’s yard. And when I got to the scene, I saw blazing fire coming through windows, doors. My first reaction was to make sure everybody that I know lives in the house; that they are okay. So I ran to see. They had somebody on the ground—I guess the owner, Mister Arzu—he was sitting down in a state of shock. I ran to Miss Arzu aide and I helped here and I was crying because to me, in this time of the year; it’s Christmas. Just the whole neighborhood came out and we were just trying to comfort the family as best as we can. We were just in a state of shock to see that this fire started out of a room and in rapid seconds, this house was blazing on fire. And the breeze; it was very windy for a Friday. For some reason, it hasn’t been windy that much since, but on that day it was very windy so you saw the fire like up to the height of the lamppost. The house was just being destroyed. From the time I saw it to about ten to eight, the house was—that was it. Nothing could have been saved; only the people living in the house.”

The family is currently staying at the Workers Union Hall and if anyone would like to help, Armstrong says you can call her at 601-7654 or Juliet Murray at 601-1254.