THE historic Sacred Heart Church on Main Street, Georgetown, destroyed in a Christmas Day fire, is likely to be rebuilt, parish priest Lourduraj Arokiasamy said yesterday.
Education Minister, Dr. Henry Jeffrey, announced too that his ministry was looking for alternative accommodation for the some 1,500 students of the Sacred Heart Primary School which was also razed by the fire.
Jeffrey told the Government Information Agency (GINA) that meetings were under way with key personnel in the ministry and proprietors of buildings to determine suitable accommodation for the students.
He said that with the Secondary Schools Entrance Examinations (SSEE) coming up, the SSEE students will be treated with priority. He noted, however, it was not likely that students will begin classes on January 3, the start of the new school term.
“It will take about two to three weeks for the school to get going,” he told the agency.
Father Arokiasamy said members of the Parish Council and the head of the Roman Catholic Diocese in Guyana, Bishop Francis Alleyne, have discussed what course of action should be taken following the loss of the church building.
He yesterday told the Chronicle that the meeting did not arrive at specifics and details but there was an indication to rebuild a church on the same site.
A follow-up meeting is expected in a few weeks when it is hoped a more definitive course of action would be arrived at, the priest said.
He added that when a decision is taken to rebuild, financial assistance would be sought from local and foreign sources, and already some persons here have expressed a willingness to make financial contributions.
However, he said it would be difficult to construct a replica of the original 142-year-old structure.
In the meantime, those who used to worship at the Sacred Heart Church would now probably do so at other Roman Catholic parishes, while alternative sites are being examined, Arokiasamy said. He added that the Sisters of the Ursuline Convent have also offered their chapel to the parishioners of Sacred Heart to carry out prayer ceremonies.
Chief Fire Officer Lawrence David told GINA that reports that the Fire Service did not do enough to control the blaze were misleading.
He said the Fire Service received a fire call at 09:06 hrs and the Commanding Officer, realising the seriousness of the fire, dispatched four fire tenders to the scene - two from the Central Fire Station and one each from the Alberttown and West Ruimveldt stations.
In addition, fire hydrants were used from Main and Middle Streets, as well as water from the drains along Carmichael and Main Streets, David said.
"Upon arrival on the scene, the church was ablaze and the northern and southern sections of the school were also on fire," he told GINA.
He added that investigations revealed that the fire was started by a short circuit in an electrical appliance in a crib at the altar. The flames spread rapidly because of the combustible materials in the crib and the congregation panicked leaving the fire to sweep through the building uncontrollably, he said.
David also stressed the importance of getting a call quickly to the Fire Service which he said is critical to performing fire fighting duties effectively and efficiently. "And I am not making excuses, but it took 16 minutes before the service was informed," he told GINA.
He noted too that the Fire Department was concerned about the close proximity in which electrical appliances are placed to highly combustible materials.
The Sacred Heart Church was one of the oldest historical buildings and a national heritage site in Guyana. It was also among the 13 monuments selected in Georgetown's nomination as a World Heritage Site.
Eyewitnesses told the Chronicle that it was around 08:45 hrs when the final hymn during the Christmas morning mass was being sung, that one of the decorative light bulbs around the symbolic crib depicting the birth of Christ exploded and started the fire.
They explained that the crib, which was made of wood and straw, was immediately engulfed in flames and the fire quickly spread to all parts of the building made mostly of pine wood and in a matter of minutes the entire structure was ablaze.
The Church of the Sacred Heart was built by Father Schembri, an Italian.
The website of the National Trust of Guyana describes it as “A fine example of renaissance architecture”.
It was constructed during 1859–1861 and was opened at midnight mass December 25 1861.