Fire Destroys Top Portion of Structure in Belize City
Orin Smith
There was no holiday on Wednesday for members of the National Fire Service based in Belize City, as around one in the afternoon they were called out to battle a blaze on Neal’s Pen Road in Belize City. Orin Smith, Station Manager at the Fire Department reports that the fire totally consumed the upper portion of a two-story structure.
Orin Smith, Station Manager, National Fire Service
“On arrival on scene, the upper flat of a sixteen by twelve, two storey structure—concrete lower flat, wooden upper flat—was seen engulfed in flames. Following a size-up, the fire department immediately went into operations, extinguishing the fire, which was later brought under control and extinguished. As a result of the fire, the upper flat of the structure was destroyed. Preliminary investigation revealed that the fire originated in a room on the northwest of the upper flat. Information received is that the upper flat was occupied by two individuals—an adult and a minor, at about eight or sometime after eight, the adult had left the structure and the child was left in the care of relatives on the same property. Some time when the child was playing on the stair, he smelled smoke and reported that to his relative, who lived on the same property, who tried to then put out the fire. Preliminary investigation revealed the fire may have resulted as a result of an electrical faulty wire within the room; however, investigation is still presently. ongoing. It is standard procedure that for structural fire, two units will always be dispatched to the location. The first truck on scene most likely will exhaust its water if the other truck takes a while to get there in support. However, the first truck on scene, with this particular fire, doesn’t have a very large quantity of water, just four-seventy-five, so yes it is expected that in a very short space of time, that truck will exhaust its supply.”
Smith said that it would have been difficult to save the house in any event as it was completely in flames on their arrival. Neither the structure nor its content was insured.
