Barbados: Blaze erupts in St James, leaves family of four homeless

A massive fire broke out at number 14, Husbands New Development, St James, Barbados, on Thursday morning. The eruption had destructive effects, leaving four people without homes.

The victim has been identified as Nigel Lowe, his partner and their two children. Upon reacting immediately on the incident, the Barbados Fire Service stated they responded to the matter around 5:30 of Thursday morning with 9 fire officers and 2 water tenders to extinguish the fire.

While shedding light on the incident, the authorities of the Fire Service stated that the fire consumed the entire house, which also resulted in causing severe damage to the neighbouring house as well. They added that the victims were left with nothing but a pair of clothes on their bodies during the time of the incident.

Nigel Lowe expressed disappointment and stated that he was on his way to work when he received a call about the incident from his wife. While narrating the incident, Lowe stated that his wife was lying down and suddenly started feeling heat.

He added that when his wife woke up to see the matter, she found the front part of the corner of the house burning. She later immediately wakes up her two children and escapes along with them.

Lowe expressed concern about the future of his family and stated that he doesn’t know that how would his family will overcome this loss. He added that the family’s loss is comprehensive and they had recently bought school uniforms and books for his younger child which has been severely destroyed.

Following the incident, the MP of the area, Davidson also visited the area and urged for the government assistance. He stated that he has talked to the Ministry of Housing and Ministry of People Empowerment to provide temporary accommodation facilities to the victim.

He added that they are also looking for the long-term solutions that can be provided to the victims in order to help them in such difficult times.

He also promised to conduct a thorough investigation into the matter as the victim expressed the tensed circumstances across the neighbourhood, with hints to await further information following any development in the investigations.

Following the incident, several citizens of the country extended condolences to the victim through their comments on their social media accounts.

One person commented “I hope god give strength to the family to recover from such loss.” Another wrote “Don’t worry people, God is there to help you in such difficult period.”