Homeless again

Annette Wright was inconsolable on Monday morning as she relived the traumatic experience of losing her home to fire for the second time.

The 57-year-old bar owner’s house was one of four destroyed in a devastating early-morning blaze at the intersection of Charles Street and Luke Lane in downtown Kingston. Sixteen people, including four children, were left homeless in the aftermath.

Four fire units from the Rollington Town, Trench Town, and York Park stations responded to the fire. Investigators are still determining the cause, but residents believe it started when a child set a mattress alight inside one of the houses.

Wright’s loss is especially painful, as she previously survived a fire 20 years ago that destroyed her board house. Since then, she had slowly rebuilt, reinforcing parts of the new structure with concrete in hopes of better protecting it.

But when neighbours’ screams alerted her to flames engulfing her home, the shock was overwhelming.

“Mi panic, so mi start draw out some suitcase and people ‘round here a help mi, but by time dem fi help mi, di fire just get outta control,” she told The Gleaner.

All she managed to save were those few bags. She also lost more than $300,000 in cash that was meant for her business.

Asharie Grant, a resident of Luke Lane, said her grandson first noticed the fire and alerted her.

“When mi look through di window, a bay fire mi see. Mi start bawl out ‘cause mi just see bay smoke. [By] time mi run out, the lady weh fi har house di fire ketch inna, she nuh in deh. A odda people come in, a throw water,” she said.

Grant lost everything – her bed, chest of drawers, dresser, two refrigerators, and a newly bought deep freezer used to store juices for sale.

“Mi nuh know weh fi do now,” she added.

Nearby, 55-year-old Marcia Myers fought back tears as she surveyed the charred remains of her family home.

“Nutten at all mi nuh save. Everything bun up in deh,” she said.

A juice vendor, Myers had just restocked her inventory the day before – now all gone.

“All mi likkle business weh mi do bun up, fridge dem bun up, juice, water, snacks … . Mi two fridge weh full a juice; everything bun up,” she said.

As firefighters battled the blaze, residents rushed to salvage belongings and support one another in the chaos.

Devon Robinson, who was passing through on his way to work, stopped to help after witnessing the fire.

“I experience fire [in] ‘98, and whenever time I see something like this I get traumatised, because when you get burn out and fi start all over again, it not wonderful,” he said.

Frustration with Fire Brigade

Some residents voiced frustration, claiming the Fire Brigade took too long to arrive.

“Mi blame di Fire Brigade. People all ride go up deh, drive go up deh ... and a dis. Mi nah lie, mi feel so upset ‘bout dem,” Wright said. “Everything mi buy, mi pay tax, so weh dem fa? ‘Cause if dem did come [quickly], mi yard wouldn’t ketch [a fire].

“I hear it more than one time where dem a try [call] and nah get anybody, and somebody have to either ride or drive go up there to get [a]response from dem,” Robinson said.

But Valerie Dixon, superintendent with responsibility for operations for the Kingston and St Andrew Division of the Jamaica Fire Brigade, said they responded swiftly.

“The moment we got the call, we dispatched the units, and more than three stations would have responded to the call,” she said.

Tivoli Gardens Division Councillor Donovan Samuels promised support for those affected. He also raised concerns about the frequency of fires in the area, attributing it, in part, to overcrowding and the age of many of the buildings.

“This affects families, and it affects them in such a big way,” he said. “Until we can change out these homes and have less people living in a particular area … it’s a dense area.”

sashana.small@gleanerjm.com