A fire of unknown origin ripped through Muneshwers Ltd on Water Street and also damaged parts of the Subway franchise as the downtown area was shrouded in noxious smoke and police chased looters taking advantage of the situation.
Up to 9 pm small fires could still be seen in some sections of the building and firemen were hard at work in an effort to quell these. There were also small, infrequent explosions.
The fire-fighters' performance was far improved compared to their last showing a month ago when another massive fire broke out on Lombard and Hadfield Streets.
Speaking to this newspaper minutes after the inferno began, Anjela Debidial, a sales clerk in the hardware section of Muneshwers said they had closed off for the day and were about to leave at around 5 pm when a young man walking along Water Street alerted them to the fire in the top flat.
She said they quickly left the building and someone made a call to the Fire Service which took only a few minutes to reach there. Debidial said they were on the lower flat of the two-storey building which also housed Subway, Muneshwers Shipping and travel agency and an office for Suriname Airways.
The inferno approaches: The inside of Muneshwers Ltd's bond yesterday afternoon. When this photo was taken, the fire had only overtaken the front of the bond. The area on fire in this photo housed accommodations for officers of the Customs and Trade Admin
Tenders on time but little water
When Stabroek News arrived, the fire tenders were just arriving. At about 5:15 pm the fire was only on the top flat eating away at a section north of the building. At this point only one hose was being used while the firemen assisted by citizens were busy trying to connect their hoses to some of the inoperable fire hydrants and to get water from the Demerara River. While this was being done a few more tenders arrived but these could not get into action immediately as water was not yet flowing in abundance.
The firemen battled with the one hose for about fifteen minutes before another hose was put into operation. By now the fire, assisted by strong winds and the many combustible items in the store, grew ominously. More hoses, some with holes in them, were put into operation but these did little to control the fire which had already begun to spread to other sections of the building. Noxious black smoke billowed in the air from the paint, putty and other chemicals fuelling the fire which rose high above the city darkening the sky.
Looters run off with flowers
The news of the fire spread as fast as the flames. Christmas shopping in Regent Street ground to a halt as people made a mad dash to the building, some only interested in looting.
Several managed to gain entrance into the burning building and started a massive looting spree with artificial flowers carted off by the handful.
Across at the wharf some twenty men, said to be from a nearby ward, made their way over to the wharf and attempted to loot items. At that time the police began to cordon off the area and the men had to jump in the river to escape. Barriers were later put up to ward off the crowds. Heavily armed ranks discharged several rounds in the Robb Street area resulting in a mad rush for cover. Several women were trampled upon as the mob rushed into Hinck Street.
Street brawls broke out when ranks attempted to retrieve some of the boxes that had been carted off. Police and looters were playing tug of war with the boxes scattering flowers on the ground. Among the other items looted were pipe fittings.
Meanwhile cans of spray paint were flying out of the windows like fireworks. At one stage a huge fireball shot into the air, not unlike something out of a movie, and the ensuing blast of heat drove back onlookers.
Around 5:45 pm, the firemen realised that their only option would be to tackle the blaze from inside the building. They started to break some of the windows with axes so as to push their hoses inside. But the bond was filled to the ceiling with drums and boxes of PVC pipes which would not be easily pushed aside.
They eventually succeeded in pulling out some of the boxes. At the same time other persons on the lower flat threw out furniture, computers and other items.
Employees of Maersk Shipping, also located in the building cleared out some of their goods and office furniture with the help of citizens. The Maersk offices were also damaged. Numerous barrels destined for customers expecting items for Christmas also went up in flames.
Muneshwers employees were weeping, with many worried about their jobs.
Robert Hanoman, co-owner of Muneshwers Ltd told Stabroek News he was at home when news of the fire broke. He said that though the business had been in operation since 1948 business only commenced some twelve years ago at the Muneshwer building.
Hanoman estimated his losses at close to US$15M and added that insurance would not cover him as the current insurance policy was for less than that.
He said he and co-owner, Amernauth Muneshwer had bought the building from the government and employed some 150 employees. Hanoman pointed out that the electrical wiring in the room where the fire was said to have started, was in good order.
Many observers on the scene, including fire-fighters, told this newspaper that the fire appeared to be electrical in origin.
Fire takes control
As the fire continued to spread some of the fire-fighters concentrated their efforts in spraying water into the building while other doused the exterior. A few of them entered the shipyard and began tackling the large bond which stored barrels, fridges and other items. An adjoining bond which stored rice and fertiliser was spared. Shortly after 7 pm, two vessels from the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) Coast Guard were dispatched to the waterfront at Muneshwers wharf in the event of the fire spreading to that section of the building which houses the fertiliser.
Fire Chief Carlyle Washington remarked that should the bond explode, it would prove very dangerous, especially because of the toxic substances contained in the fertiliser.
Commander John Flores said the Coast Guard had its own fire-fighting equipment and would be ready to go into action.
Red Cross volunteers were also on hand for any minor medical emergencies. Washington said it was proving a bit difficult to put out the small fires because the building was "too compartmentalised."
However, the firemen had the situation under control by that time.
While the fire took control, Fogarty's, Guyana Stores, Brassonic and other Water Street stores closed up for fear of looters. The Guyana Bank for Trade and Industry which is on the southern side of Muneshwers was threatened, but bank officials told this newspaper that emergency plans were quickly put in place. Some of the computers were secured, while the ATMs were closed down.
Gajraj 'satisfied' with effort
At around 6 pm Minister of Home Affairs, Ronald Gajraj along with other government officials and PNCR Leader, Robert Corbin arrived. Gajraj said he was satisfied with the work the firemen were doing. At that point the fire had almost consumed the upper flat of the building and was threatening the lower flat. The minister said all of the fire tenders in the city had been deployed. He did observe that there were fire hydrants around the Fogarty's area but these were not working. Gajraj said because of the many combustible items it was very difficult for the firemen to extinguish it, and as such they had to focus more on containing it and preventing it from spreading to the other buildings.
Guyana Water Inc (GWI) executive Andrew Barber was on the scene and said he had spoken with Chief Fire Officer, Washington about their fire-fighting strategy.
He said he had instructed the Shelter Belt to maintain a continuous supply of water to the area. He added that a large number of GWI workers were on the scene helping out. Stabroek News observed that the power to the area had been turned off.
Latest fire to hit city
On November 13, a late night fire ravaged Auto Supplies Company Ltd, (ASCO), Royal Castle and Mohamed's Enterprise at Lombard and Hadfield streets leaving nearly 180 persons jobless.
The fire had started after a container truck hit a utility pole in front of Mohamed's Enterprise sparking a small fire on the roof of Royal Castle which soon spread into an uncontrollable inferno.
The Guyana Fire Service (GPF) headquarters although only a few feet away was said to be slow to respond. Their failure to control the fire was put down to a lack of water from the hydrants and it was reported that when they went to Shelter Belt, GWI employees were playing cards.
Another big fire occurred on May 6, 2000 when a fire on Main Street razed the Park Hotel owned by the Kissoon Group of companies. On April 9, 2001 a fire reportedly set by an arsonist ripped through Regent Street. The blaze began at the Camp Street premises of Kissoon Furniture City and demolished several other businesses. (Additional reporting by Johann Earle and Edlyn Benfield)