Marabella residents call for ban on fireworks as fire damages house

Some residents of Roy Terrace Mottoo lands Marabella have joined the growing list of those  calling for the ban on the sale of fireworks  to the public.

This after the house of one resident, a 70-year-old woman was nearly destroyed by  fire on Divali night. A flare from fireworks some 300 metres away entered through open louvres setting  curtains, floor carpet and ceiling ablaze. One resident  who did not want to disclose his identity said that around 7.30 pm on Friday night some 20 people gathered on the roadside were using fireworks  when the incident occurred. The resident said that within seconds the curtains were ablaze. However, on short notice a team of neighbours climbed to the top of the house using a garden hose to douse the flames. They were also  forced to break the lock on one of the doors to extinguish the rapidly spreading flames. The resident  said , “No one was home at the time, and if we did not act quickly the house may have burnt down.” Ironically,  one of the neighbours who raised the alarm was only recently injured by a  similar device, a scratch bomb, which after exploding at her feet left her nursing  serious injuries. She was at the time teaching at her school,  Princes Town Junior Secondary.

When Newsday visited the home of the elderly woman yesterday she was grateful for not losing her house. She further said, “ I still shaky, my house almost  burn dowm. Imagine an old woman like me have to go through all this, this is real carelessness.” Damage caused by the fire was estimated at $10,000. Officers from the Mon Repos Fire station  visited the scene afterwards. They retrieved the firework device that started the fire. Residents in other districts complained of loud scratch bombs disturbing their  pet animals and  setting off their car alarms. On Thursday last, a house at Mission Road, Freeport  was destroyed by fire. Damage was estimated at $200,000. Investigators believe that the fire started after a toddler attempted to light a scratch bomb in the bedroom. According to reports, while trying to do so, the bed caught fire. The blaze spread, destroying the house. Over the long weekend both police and  fire services had to  contend with many calls and incidents related to the nuisance of fireworks and scratchbombs.