The Costello Housing Scheme in Georgetown was plunged into a state of sadness this afternoon after a 93-year-old woman died tragically in an early afternoon fire at her home.
The woman, Rosa Singh, who was also known as Aunty Baba, was a mother of four.
She shared the home with her son, Narine Singh. However, she was the only person at home when fire engulfed the building this afternoon.
At the scene, the woman’s son Narine Singh watched helplessly as firefighters tried to contain the fire. He told reporters that he left his mom alone at home this morning to run some errands. The entire house was engulfed in flames when he returned home just after 1:30 this afternoon.
“I left home between 9:30 and 10:00 o’clock. I said mommy I going to down to do my business and I am coming back. She said alright, don’t pick up no lunch because your sister sending lunch, I said alright. Is coming back home, I coming back home, and I get a call in the bus coming in West but I couldn’t take the call. But when I come out the bus, then I see. And then I said something wrong,” Narine said.
By that time a large crowd had already converged in front of the burning building. The man said he has no clue what could have caused the fire since they would not do any cooking in the house.
“No, we ain’t cook nothing. We food does come from Shanta’s and it does come from big market,” the man explained.
As he received confirmation that his mother was indeed killed in the fire, he broke down in tears. The elderly woman’s charred remains were brought out of the building, leaving many of those who gathered at the scene in tears.
A neighbour recounted that it was another neighbour who first noticed the fire in the top flat of the building and raised an alarm immediately.
“A lil smoke, a slight lil smoke went coming out from the corner. Is Zena what see the thing, and Zena holler out and everybody run out from the SuperBet because we went in the SuperBet. And them boys start run and kick open the door and run upstairs and they look, look, look and they aint see no body. They said she ain’t deh up deh,” the woman recalled.
The Guyana Fire Service said received a call about the fire at 1:25 pm, and immediately responded with a total of three fire tenders.
While the firefighters managed to contain the blaze to the one building, they could not reach the elderly woman in time.
An investigation into the cause of the fire has been launched.
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