Exclusive | Point Hill family in limbo -Fire destroys 7-bedroom house; loss estimated at $8M

Exclusive | Point Hill family in limbo -Fire destroys 7-bedroom house; loss estimated at $8M

March 2, 2021 0 By Horace Mills

Members of a family at Mendez district in Point Hill, St. Catherine, remain in limbo more than a week after fire ravaged the seven-bedroom house they occupied.

Seven people, including a child who is three years old and another who is seven, have been displaced since the inferno about 9PM on Saturday, February 20.

One of the persons affected directly, Donnette Clarke, said she was elsewhere in the community when a niece alerted her regarding a fire at the back of the building.

When Clarke rushed home, she tried to extinguish the blaze, but without success.

“The fire start from the back. Mi niece see the fire coming an wake up mi mother and get her out the house,” Clarke recalled.

“We were trying to see if we could throw some water, but we couldn’t face the fire. Is only a bed and a mattress wi get out. The fire damage the house. The wall standing, but it is no good.”

Clarke added that the fire consumed virtually all the family’s belongings, including eight beds and three flat screen television sets.

“When the fire-fighters came, it’s like the fire got out of hand already and everything burn. Dem try dem best and out it,” Clarke said.

Acting Senior Deputy Superintendent for St. Catherine Fire Department, Dennis Lyons, told The Beacon that the estimated loss resulting from the inferno is $8 million.

He added that fire fighters are yet to ascertain the cause of the blaze.

The fire squad was alerted about the blaze at 9:40PM, and a unit was dispatched from Spanish Town.

Since the incident, members of the displaced family have been occupying a bedroom provided by a relative.

“Wi have to just kinda cope, because wi can’t get down too much,” Clarke said.

She added that she already visited the office of her Member of Parliament, Dr. Christopher Tufton, but her family is yet to get assistance from there.

Clarke also expressed gratitude for the relatively small assistance already rendered, adding that her family would be appreciative of further help.

Persons who wish to assist can request the family’s contact information through The Beacon.


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