Neighbours' rescue attempts fail – RETIREE DIES IN FIRE

DESPITE repeated rescue attempts by two of his neighbours, 76-year-old pensioner Michael "Galba" Cornum died in the kitchen of his Techier Village, Pt Fortin apartment home which was destroyed by fire during the early morning hours on Tuesday.

Cornum's screams of agony and cries for help is something his neighbour David Cornwall says he won't soon forget.

Cornwall, who lived in the other apartment situated in the same building, said he and another neighbour Stanley Dick tried repeatedly to get into Cornum's apartment in order to rescue him, when they were alerted to the fire shortly after midnight.

While he escaped with his life, Cornwall said he lost all of his possessions as the blaze gutted the entire building. The house is part of a senior citizens community which contains several houses all of which have been divided into two-apartment units. In all, about 24 elderly people live in this community.

As he sat next to Dick on the stairs of one of the buildings on the compound, Cornwall recalled being awakened by a crackling sound and realised that his apartment was filling up with smoke.

As he ran out, Cornwall said he realised the front door of the other apartment in the building, where Cornum lived, was opened and he saw flames inside and raised an alarm. This was when Dick, 69, ran over to the building to try and help.

Cornwall said he moved into the apartment about three years ago while Cornum had been living there since 2015.

Cornwall said as he looked inside the apartment, he saw Cornum – whose clothes had caught fire – trying to beat off the flames with a towel in the kitchen.

"Galba was bawling and screaming. He was standing near the stove so I suspect he was trying to cook something when the fire started. I called out to Dick who quickly came over to help. But the fire was blocking the entrance by the front door," Cornwall said.

Dick said he used three fire extinguishers – one belonging to him, another to Cornwall, and the third belonging to another neighbour – to try and douse the flames at the entrance to Cornum's apartment so that he and Cornwall could try to rescue the screaming man.

Dick said when this did not work, he and Cornwall tried to enter the apartment through a window. But this too proved futile.

"He kept bawling and crying out for help. It not easy hearing his screams. We tried to keep him calm and told him to hang on. We knew he was knocked out and did not make it when all of a sudden his screams stopped and he went quiet," Cornwall said.

Wiping away tears, he continued, "I could not get into the house. I emptied an entire can (fire extinguisher) by the window. After that, the fire got worse and I had to back out. The fire was out of control."

Cornwall said he suffered burns to his fingers as he tried to open the window. He said he also injured his back when burning debris fell on him.

"I am so sorry I could not do more to help. This thing heartbreaking. Galba was trapped in his own kitchen. We are all residents here and must look out for one another. The fire officers' response was good eh, but by then it was too late when they arrived," Dick said.

Shortly after the firemen extinguished the blaze, Cornum's charred remains were found in the kitchen. Police sources said he was burnt beyond recognition.

Matron of the community Charmaine Billy recalled that when she visited the scene she became overcome with emotion. An ambulance which accompanied the fire tenders to the blaze, later transported her to hospital after she suffered a panic attack.

"We were hearing him but no one could have reached him," Billy told Newsday.

Cornum's remains were later taken to the mortuary of the Point Fortin Hospital. An autopsy is expected to be done at the Forensic Science Centre in St James, to officially ascertain cause of death.

Fire officers from the Fire Prevention Unit at the Southern Division were at the scene on Tuesday when Newsday visited. A cause for the fire is yet to be determined. Point Fortin police are continuing investigations.

Cornwall who is a member of the Tornadoes pan side, said that at his age, he does not know how to go about seeing about himself after he lost all of his possessions to the fire and is now homeless.