City house fire may be arson

Two people are homeless tonight after their two-bedroom house at 3716 Louise Bevans Street was damaged by fire early Saturday morning. The occupant of the house, Latoya Coleman, says she was at work at the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital when she received the disturbing news.

Latoya Coleman, Fire victim
“I gone da work about ten-thirty Friday and about sometime after two coming on to three the morning my bredda call me and tell me that the house deh pan fire. So two minutes after I see him outside of my work and he tell me fi mek we go by the house go see what. So I ask fi time off and when I get deh the fire fighters mi done deh pan di scene, deh mi done out the fire and everything. I still noh understand how di fire started right. I di try ask my bredda if he left on anything because he left home before me. I da mi di last one weh left the house.”

Marion Ali
“You never check if anything mi left on?”

Latoya Coleman
“Usually when I work night shift or any shift at all I usually cut off everything inside the house. Only thing we usually left on like the refrigerator and stuff. Den deh deh pan fi deh own outlet. But I still di ask my bredda if he have anything with anybody and he say he have nothing with anybody. Apparently deh set the house pan fire.”

A check with fire officials this evening supports this theory as they too are looking at the strong possibility of arson. Fire officials are still trying to locate the owner of the house, a man going by the nickname “Jew Boy”. Coleman has also not yet tallied her losses, which she says include most of her household appliances, from both water damage and theft. She is staying with a cousin on Courtenay’s Crescent and is appealing for help to replace her possessions. Coleman can be contacted at 601-1523.