King’s Wharf fire leaves 17 homeless

According to reports, the fire broke out at just after 7.15 pm in a corner house and quickly spread to the other three houses.

The cause of the fire is unknown at this time.

Fire appliances from the Mon Repos Fire Station responded but were unable to save any of the houses.

Mother of two young children, Afesha Noel, 26, said she saw a blaze coming from one of her neighbour’s house and within one minute it had spread to the others.

“My house burn down. I have two children. I am a single mother.

I not working nowhere and I getting public assistance,” Noel said as she stared at the ruins of her home. She pointed out that none of the houses had an electricity connection.

“I lost about $30,000 and $40,000 in everything,’ she said.

Her eldest daughter, Aliesha Joseph, 11 is a Standard Five student at the San Fernando Methodist Primary School and is due to sit the SE A examinations next year, while her younger daughter, Aliyah Allarah is 10 months-old.

Alexander Gibbs, 49, whose house was the first to catch fire was not at home at the time but was keeping watch on his boat which was anchored a short distance away behind the Customs Shed at the wharf.

He said not only had he lost everything in the fire but also lost groceries and other items he was keeping for Venezuelans nationals who were due to return home today.

“My house was the first house to catch fire. I was sitting behind Customs watch-manning my boat and a little youth man come and tell me my house on fire. When I reach, it had nothing I could do,” Gibbs said. “I have the people gas hose, I have their grocery, I have my fridge, my tv, my stereo set, although I have no electricity,” he said.

“When I home, I light up my lamp. When I not home, I out everything,’ he said.

He said the Venezuelans would pay him a small rental fee to keep their groceries which they had purchased as his home was close to the Customs port. He was unable to give a figure for the amount of foodstuff lost in the blaze