Barbados Hardware fire wipes out beauty salon
Quick action by the Barbados Fire Service averted the possibility of a major City fire early yesterday.
Just after 4 a.m., fire broke out on the top floor of Barbados Hardware, one of the oldest companies in Bridgetown, completely wiping out Samantha's Salon, a hair-dressing establishment, and a storeroom which housed cosmetics and other related products.
Sterling work by firemen, who brought the fire under control after about two hours, restricted it to the three-storey building at the corner of Swan and Lucas Streets.
Chief Fire Officer Chesterfield Mayers, who responded to the blaze with four fire tenders and 16 men, said there were some challenges involved in containing the fire to the building's top floor and avoiding the possibility of a major fire in Bridgetown.
"The very fact it (the building) was a semi high-rise building and all the stores were locked presented a challenge to us. Fortunately, we were able to bring in the turn-table ladder to do the job for us," he said.
Philip Seale, general manager of Barbados Hardware, was counting his lucky stars since his long-standing establishment suffered minimal damage.
"From what we could see, our damage should be just a clean-up," he said.
However, Samantha Sargeant, owner of the salon, estimated her losses to be over $100 000.
The gutted store house was reportedly owned by Keith and Shirnelle Walcott.
There are 15 businesses located in the building.
Police and fire officials were yesterday sifting through the ashes to determine the cause of the fire. |