Suburban
THE Greystone Park family whose house was recently gutted by fire after a suspected stray fire cracker landed on the thatched roof have expressed their gratitude to the community for the assistance they are receiving and the City of Harare Fire Department for saving the property from complete destruction.
Peter Tanyanyiwa Suburban Reporter
Residents of Greystone Park also commended the City of Harare fire-fighters for responding in time and gallantly extinguishing the fire before it damaged the whole two-storey property.
The house caught fire on New Year’s Eve after a suspected stray fire cracker — believed to have been launched by merry-makers celebrating the dawn of the new season — landed on the roof of the thatched house, badly damaging the building and destroying property.
On landing on the thatch roof, the suspected firecracker ignited and razed down a portion of the two storey-house as people celebrated the cross over into the New Year.
Residents of Greystone Park said the City of Harare Fire department deserves a special mention as they did a good job
“The City of Harare Fire Department surely deserves a mention for a job well done as they did everything they could considering the time they were alerted of the inferno,” said a concerned resident.
The fire incident happened around midnight on New Year’s Eve when people started blasting fire crackers in the normally serene neighbourhood.
The fire consumed much of the house’s thatched roof while household property worth thousands of dollars was destroyed although there were no fatalities.
One of the owners of the house Mr Bret Spark narrated how the incident took place and response of the city’s fire fighters.
He thanked the City of Harare Fire Department for their incredible effort and professional handling of the situation as he said things could have been much worse if they hadn’t done such a good job.
“At midnight on the 1st of January a loud explosion was heard on the roof.
“When I checked outside there were already flames coming from the thatch as well as numerous fireworks exploding in the sky, some landing in my neighbours’ garden as well.
“I called out for help to my direct neighbour and alerted the Fire Brigade. By this point numerous people from the neighbourhood appeared to assist me to try to extinguish the flames with both a garden hosepipe and a fire extinguisher but it was hopeless as the fire had already spread along the entire top length of the roof.
“We had also started to salvage what we could from downstairs as the fire brigade arrived with two engines and a crew of 12. They immediately set to work on putting out the flames using both their own water from one side and water pumped from the swimming pool adjacent to the house on the other side,” he narrated.
“Unfortunately, the fire was deep into the thatch engulfing the entire house and kept flaring up many times that it took them almost seven hours and nearly 100 000 litres of water to extinguish the flames completely.
“The firemen, although exposed to falling burning thatch, exploding windows, and collapsing bricks worked diligently the entire time.
“On behalf of myself, my family and Evan, my housemate, we would like to express our sincere thanks and gratitude to the City of Harare Fire Department, our neighbours, Safeguard Security, our neighbourhood watch and everyone else who assisted us during those traumatic and dangerous moments.
“We would like to thank the Harare community for their kindness and incredible generosity in helping us move forward from this terrible ordeal. We cannot thank you enough for what you have done for us,” said Mr Spark.
All personal items were lost in the inferno that engulfed the building causing extensive damage and destroying some household property.
Appeals by the community to assist the family are continuing as residents stand with one of their own in this difficult period.
“All personal items were lost by the fire that engulfed and destroyed the building. If you feel led to give, please send to the merchant platform GPSNW 402566.
“Donated items can be dropped off at Borrowdale Country Club noted as ‘Guyscliff/Guys Rd New Year House Fire,” reads the appeal by the Greystone Park Security Neighbourhood Watch.
