Old Harbour business community assisting fire victims

The Old Harbour Chamber of Commerce so far has been able to galvanize support from several stakeholder groups including those from the political directorate, Food for the Poor, the police and civil society.

On December 25 of last year, a three bedroom board dwelling in Red Ground, north Old Harbour, was gutted to pure ash.

The painful disaster, left 71-year-old owner Winston Grant and five other members of the family homeless and with only the clothes they had on at the time. No one was at home at the time of the fire.

Since then the premier business group in south western St Catherine has been mobilizing relief efforts to aid the family to get them back on their feet.

• Fire destroys three-bedroom house in Red Ground

A temporary board house nearby the site of where the fiery incident happened has been identified and retrofitted as a temporary base for the family.

At the same time a technical team has been formed to iron out finer details of plans to erect a new permanent structure, ideally one built of concrete. The project is scheduled to take six months to complete.

Providing an update, chamber president Treacha Reid-McCalla, said: “We identified a temporary housing solution for them that we have reconstructed Monday. We were able to source materials: doors, ply boards… we got those from Homer Plus Hardware, Dennis Hardware and W&B Hardware. The three hardwares came together and ensure that we fixed the temporary structure so that the entire family can go back under one roof.

“The structure we are trying to rebuild is a concrete structure but if not we will source a two bedroom board structure through Food for the Poor and then we will add-on the other rooms that they will need. We have sourced clothes for them, foods, tablets… We have ensured the children are getting counselling from their schools. We have been in touch with Red Cross to source mattress and blankets for them.”

Responding to the work being done on behalf of his family, a grateful Grant said he’s very optimistic that he will return to the place he calls home all his life.

“Everything a happen mi boss, and mi give God thanks,” he told Old Harbour News.

“The only problem mi have you see, is the fire report a move very slow. Look like a it a hold up the progress, because everyone that come to help me them tell me they need the fire report.

“So instead of me sitting down waiting on them, mi ago go over there first thing Monday morning and ask them for the report.”