Hundreds on breadline

A shortage of water added to the chaotic situation as fire officers hastily ran a hose from Frederick Street to the sea to get water to extinguish the rapidly spreading blaze, the biggest fire in Trinidad since the 1990 attempted coup.

By midday yesterday, the fire seemed uncontrollable and some business owners, fearful that their business places would be gutted, hurriedly removed items in trucks and vans. Victims of the fire looked on helplessly as the flames enveloped several buildings, while employees who turned up for work wept as their sources of livelihood went up in flames. Among the affected was Health Minister John Rahael, whose family owns Queensway. He stood at the scene, sipped a drink from a disposable cup and looked on as fire destroyed the popular fabric store but insisted that he was not in a position to comment on the situation. Fire officers at the scene were hampered by a shortage of water and leaking hoses. Several fire hydrants along Frederick Street, Queen Street and surrounding areas were without water.

WASA officials were asked to turn on the main lines but the water pressure failed to build up enough to extinguish the blaze. WASA sent truck-borne supplies to the scene, but when this ran out fire officers sent fire tenders to Wrightson Road to fill their tanks with water. By midday yesterday, additional truck-borne supplies of water had to be rushed to the scene. As the blaze spread to the Pizza Burger Boy’s outlet on Frederick Street, it raged out of control and it took fire officers almost two hours to bring it under control.

Firefighters battled the blaze for the better part of the day and only managed to bring the fire under control at around 3 pm. According to reports, the fire started at around 6.10 am on the western side of the People’s Mall. An eyewitness telephoned the Port-of-Spain CID and Brigade Headquarters on Wrightson Road.

By the time firefighters arrived on the scene, the People’s Mall was engulfed in flames. A man at the scene claimed that he witnessed a shootout at the mall shortly before the fire broke out, but this report could not be confirmed by police and fire officials. Chief Fire Officer Lennox Alfred said fire tenders were sourced from throughout North Trinidad, as well as Tunapuna and Chaguanas. According to Alfred, a shortage of water hampered efforts to bring the fire under control in a short space of time, but he insisted that the fire officers did their best in very difficult circumstances.

The situation was made worse by the fact that most of the fire hydrants in Port-of-Spain are non-functional. Although this problem was brought to the attention of WASA officials, they did nothing to correct the situation which was first detected a few years ago during a major fire which destroyed Excellent Stores. Glenwood Jones, president of the People’s Mall Tenants’ Asso-ciation, told Sunday Newsday only a few of the tenants were able to salvage their belongings. He estimated that losses suffered by the 140 small entrepreneurs who operated from the site could run into millions of dollars. Jones said that he would be seeking a meeting with the authorities to discuss the building of a proper retail facility at the site.

Many of the affected said their items were uninsured and they were unsure how to go about getting back on their feet. Commenting on the situation, Gregory Aboud, president of the Downtown Owners and Mer-chants Association (DOMA) said: "We are very, very distressed. We consider this to be a disaster, as hundreds of people are out of work, and many business places, such as the People’s Mall which provided employment for many, have been destroyed. We are disappointed that the situation could not have been controlled earlier. We contacted WASA and they told us they were opening all the lines and sending private contractors, but that did not bring the water."

Aboud praised the fire officers for their valiant efforts to contain the fire. An emergency meeting of DOMA was scheduled for yesterday afternoon to discuss ways to assist those who had suffered losses in the fire. Port-of-Spain Mayor Murchi-son Brown expressed sympathy to all who suffered losses. More than 100 police officers and soldiers cordoned off Fred-erick, Queen and Henry Streets and environs to prevent looting. Police barriers were placed at some corners, while some city streets were blocked off to provide emergency routes for fire trucks delivering water to the scene.

Around 1 pm, police reported that a group of men were snatching jewelry and cell phones from onlookers at the scene. This was soon dealt with and persons with no business in the city were advised to stay out of the area. Fire prevention officers have advised people to stay away from the burnt out ruins. A clean-up of the scene is expected to begin tomorrow.