by TRACY MOORE
Shopkeeper Cheryl Dottin and her three sons lost their home, all its contents, and their three dogs in a blaze early yesterday afternoon at 5th Avenue University Drive, St Michael.
Firemen from the Probyn Street headquarters arrived on the scene just in time to contain the fire to their house and save the adjoining grocery shop called S & D Variety Hideaway.
Officer-in-charge at the scene, Station Officer Junior Boyce, told the SUNDAY SUN they were unsure what caused the fire but were working alongside the police "to come up with a determination".
"We are still investigating. We have not yet resolved the cause of the fire. As you can see the entire area is burnt out, and we are now going through the rubble to see what we can come up with," explained Boyce.
Dottin who arrived from a funeral about half an hour after the fire trucks, became hysterical at the scene, screaming and crying to go inside her home "to save the dogs".
She said she could not be sure what started the fire.
"I didn't use the stove this morning. All I did was just use the kettle, and when I was done I plug out the kettle and turn off the switch. I does double check everything. I have no idea how this start," she said tearfully.
A few neighbours admitted they acted too late to save the house, but were just in time to save the grocery shop: "I went next door for souse, my partner tell me 'you sure this house ain't burning? I smell smoke'. We acted a bit late," admitted the neighbour.
Another, Anderson Husbands, said he was on his way to his father's home when he spotted the smoke. He ran back to find the house already engulfed in flames.
"It look like it was coming from the yard, so I went by my father and when I was inside my brother asked me if that smoke coming from Cheryl house. So when we bound back outside, it [house] was engulfed. We come and run here and try to break down to get inside the shop to get the things out, but the house gone," said Husbands.
Yesterday's blaze was the second in 24 hours. On Friday two houses in Reed Street, the City, were destroyed and another one burnt. Seven people were left homeless.
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