11 homeless in Cedros fire

A family of 11 is now homeless after a fire destroyed their home in Cedros on Saturday.

The family was able to run out of the burning house before it was destroyed. Two nearby houses were also damaged by the fire, and one man got minor burns to his chest and hands.

Police said at about 2.30 pm, at Bonasse Trace, Cedros, homeowner Lisa Boodoo-Austin, and her four children, were on the ground floor of their two storey home when they saw smoke coming from the upstairs of the house.

Her husband, Brian Austin, who is a marine chief engineer, was not at home. He said he got a call from his wife, telling him their house was on fire.

Austin said other relatives and friends live upstairs. One of them, he said, is a judge from Venezuela.

Austin said the fire started in a bedroom of the house. He told Newsday three months ago he changed his roof. “It is really hard for us now. I have a 10-year-old son who suffers from seizures. I don’t have it too easy but I fighting up.”

Councillor for the area Shankar Teelucksingh said firemen arrived at the burning house with a small water tender, with only about 4,000 litres of water.

He also said the hose they were using was leaking, and he had to call the Water and Sewerage Authority for assistance but was told that the water pressure was very low.

Teelucksingh said Petrotrin responded at approximately 5.30 pm, with a backup unit. He said there was only one fire hydrant in Bonasse which is the main district in Cedros.

The cause of the fire has not yet been determined. Cedros police are investigating.