By Nakasia Logan
December 13, 2024
An early morning fire in West Minster, West Bank Demerara, claimed the lives of a 75-year-old woman and her 43-year-old bedridden daughter, leaving three others homeless.
The incident occurred around 4:00 a.m. at 1334 West Minster Onderneeming.
The deceased have been identified as Phyllis Smith and her daughter, Vanetta Smith, who had been bedridden for several years.
Surviving the tragedy are Ricknauth Smith, the son and brother of the deceased, along with his 21-year-old sister Chandine Sookraj and her four-year-old daughter, Veleta Sookraj.
According to the Guyana Fire Service, firefighters received a report of the blaze at 4:45 a.m.
When they arrived at the scene, the wooden house was already destroyed, with only the concrete pillars remaining.
Preliminary investigations suggest the fire was caused by an overloaded electrical circuit, which resulted in sparking and ignited nearby combustible materials, rapidly consuming the structure.
Authorities reported that Chandine Sookraj was asleep in the front room with her daughter, while her mother and sister were in another bedroom.
She awoke to intense heat and discovered that the other room was engulfed in flames.
Acting quickly, she took her daughter and exited the house through the southern door, alerting neighbors to the fire.
Ricknauth Smith, who was not at home at the time of the fire, is now among the family members displaced by the incident.
Fire officials continue to investigate the circumstances surrounding the blaze.