Fire hits near downtown; eight families homeless

The buildings were old and the boards were dry, so when fire broke out this afternoon in a congested Belize City neighbourhood, it didn’t take long to become a major inferno.

Jacqueline Godwin, Reporting
Thick black smoke billowed forth over East Canal on the south side Belize City as a raging fire broke out on nearby Prince Street.

Area residents and onlookers quickly tried to help families whose homes were no match for the flames that quickly engulfed one building after the next.

As the fire continued to grow and spread into the congested neighbourhood, people frantically tried to help battle the flames but there was nothing they could have done to save the burning buildings.

The situation seemed hopeless as families watched their neighbours’ houses fall to the flames, then desperately trying to save their own household possessions as their homes came under threat.

Families living along Prince Street used an abandoned lot across from the inferno to store household furniture, appliances, and boxes of clothes. We found a number of the fire victims in obvious distress, like the Neal family who watched helplessly as their house burned to the ground.

Jacqueline Godwin
“Were you home? Just tell us what happened?

Shanine Neal, Fire Victim
“I mi dah work, but only this lady mi deh home, but when I come they tell me weh happen. They seh that how the amount ah Spanish weh live inna the yard deh lef on their gas tank and from deh, like they light a match or something like that and the whole surrounding catch fire. … I couldn’t do nothing. He just come dah my work come tell me.”

Jacqueline Godwin
“So you were unable to save anything?”

Shanine Neal, Fire Victim
“No. My pa just hurry come from his work back a port and he come and he hurry get out yah and he noh get nothing out.”

Everal Neal, Fire Victim
“I mi deh dah work Jackie. I just get a call from customs and they tell me that they di back out thing outta mi house, the house side ah my house the ketch fire and everybody deh out yah and everybody di help back out the thing them and the fire just start. The engine come late before they stop the fire to prevent from the rest ah house them from burn. They just start to lash the fire from this side and the breeze off the water and the fire come over the next side and attack. … And burn down my whole house and everything fi me and my thing they noh even insure, Jackie.”

Gilroy Cadogan, Fire Victim
“I mi deh round by Pound Yard Bridge and see the smoke inna the air. And from I see the smoke inna the air I dah wah person weh could judge good, so I seh, but that look like the canal side. So I start to ride my bicycle and when I di inquire on the way they seh dah by Belgrave. When they seh dah by Belgrave, I seh well that dah right by me, so when I come round the lane I see crowd and see my wife start to cry and see people di haul out thing outta my house. But to be truthful, I saved bout seventy-five percent ah fi we thing.”

The residents say the many of the homes could have been saved, but the fire service took a long time to respond.

Gilroy Cadogan
“They tek over thirty-seven minutes, guaranteed, and you know I dah the statistician and I really, really up with time. I want Mr. Baizar or weh ih name explicate this situation to me because this totally outta control. They seh they respond to fire inna four minutes and this dah noh no four minutes; they tek at least between thirty-seven minutes to forty-five minutes, this outta hand.”

“General house coulda mi save, Ms. Alice house coulda mi save, my neighbour upstairs loose everything totally, computer everything. We lose bout twenty-five percent of everything; General lose nearly ninety percent or hundred percent a fi he things. This totally, totally outta control. I noh know weh they wah do bout the fire service. I hear people di talk bout the fire service, but I neva experience nothing like this and since I di live it, this outta hand.”

At the scene, News Five was unable to get a response from the National Fire Service.

But the fire was not the only tragedy that occurred. As the fire trucks were racing the scene one of the vehicle’s wheels reportedly ran over this man who was standing in the area. The man, who badly injured his leg, was put in a pickup truck and rushed to the Karl Heusner Memorial Hospital.

Unconfirmed reports are that a total of four houses were completely destroyed and eight families are left homeless.

We are informed by the P.U.P. Albert Committee that they have already begun to help fire victims with their immediate needs as well as providing longer term assistance.