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50 vendors lose livelihood in Kingston fire
BY COREY ROBINSON Observer staff reporter [email protected]
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
MORE than 50 vendors yesterday morning lost their livelihood when fire destroyed their stores and stalls at Oxford Mall in downtown Kingston.
An estimate of the overall damage by the fire, which started about 1:00 am, was not immediately available but some vendors said they lost all their Christmas stock in the inferno.
Four-year-old Jevan Allen is a picture of grief as he watches his aunt (not pictured) pick through the rubble for what is left of her Christmas stock following a fire at the Oxford Mall in downtown Kingston yesterday. Jevan's aunt was among at least 50 vendors who lost their goods when the fire, which began at about 1:00 am yesterday destroyed their stores and stalls at the busy arcade. Up to press time it was not determined what started the fire. (Photo: Michael Gordon)
No injuries were reported and the cause of the fire was not ascertained.
"I lose everything; millions of dollars me tell you," said a clothes vendor who identified herself only as Charmaine, who has been operating a business at the Oxford Mall for 12 years.
"I don't even want to go 'round there to look at the stall because I can't manage it. I am here but I can't believe that this happened all now," added the distressed woman.
"I had some big plans (for Christmas); I have some debts and bills that I wanted to clear up but with this I don't know what is going to happen now," lamented a frustrated Annette Thomas, another vendor who lost goods in the blaze.
Vendors comfort each other as they look at the debris-filled areas where their stalls stood before fire ravaged the Oxford Mall in downtown Kingston yesterday morning. (Photo: Michael Gordon)
Town clerk at the Kingston and St Andrew Corporation, Errol Greene, who visited the fire scene to give moral support to the vendors, described the incident as tragic, especially given the current economic state.
Said Greene: "This is the wholesale section (destroyed) so you know that persons would have lost millions and millions of dollars.
"About 50 individuals would have been affected, some of them would have borrowed money through small business loans."
The town clerk said representatives of some lending agencies had visited the mall to view the damage first- hand.
Up to late yesterday afternoon, however, it was still unclear what caused the blaze.
Vendors speculated that it could be caused by an electrical short-circuit, while Greene said that he was informed that "people were here welding during the course of the night, so I don't know if it was caused by the sparks from the welding".
Four fire units extinguished the blaze, which lasted about three hours, according to Greene.
"At present everybody (vendors) just want to clear the area, and after that we should have a meeting to see where we go from here, 'cause nobody is taking this lying down," said Michael Webb, data research manager at the Kingston and St Andrew Corporation Market Department.
Webb's sentiments were echoed by the dozens of vendors - who despite using shovels to clear away the charred, wet remnants of their goods - were determined to move on quickly.
"We have to do what we can do; we cannot sit down and wait like the rest. All we have to do is beg them send out some water trucks to help we wash out in here," shouted a female vendor. "Let we knock up back the little shops them, tie up back the tarpaulin and get back on we feet," she said.
BY COREY ROBINSON Observer staff reporter [email protected]
Wednesday, October 28, 2009
MORE than 50 vendors yesterday morning lost their livelihood when fire destroyed their stores and stalls at Oxford Mall in downtown Kingston.
An estimate of the overall damage by the fire, which started about 1:00 am, was not immediately available but some vendors said they lost all their Christmas stock in the inferno.
Four-year-old Jevan Allen is a picture of grief as he watches his aunt (not pictured) pick through the rubble for what is left of her Christmas stock following a fire at the Oxford Mall in downtown Kingston yesterday. Jevan's aunt was among at least 50 vendors who lost their goods when the fire, which began at about 1:00 am yesterday destroyed their stores and stalls at the busy arcade. Up to press time it was not determined what started the fire. (Photo: Michael Gordon)
No injuries were reported and the cause of the fire was not ascertained.
"I lose everything; millions of dollars me tell you," said a clothes vendor who identified herself only as Charmaine, who has been operating a business at the Oxford Mall for 12 years.
"I don't even want to go 'round there to look at the stall because I can't manage it. I am here but I can't believe that this happened all now," added the distressed woman.
"I had some big plans (for Christmas); I have some debts and bills that I wanted to clear up but with this I don't know what is going to happen now," lamented a frustrated Annette Thomas, another vendor who lost goods in the blaze.
Vendors comfort each other as they look at the debris-filled areas where their stalls stood before fire ravaged the Oxford Mall in downtown Kingston yesterday morning. (Photo: Michael Gordon)
Town clerk at the Kingston and St Andrew Corporation, Errol Greene, who visited the fire scene to give moral support to the vendors, described the incident as tragic, especially given the current economic state.
Said Greene: "This is the wholesale section (destroyed) so you know that persons would have lost millions and millions of dollars.
"About 50 individuals would have been affected, some of them would have borrowed money through small business loans."
The town clerk said representatives of some lending agencies had visited the mall to view the damage first- hand.
Up to late yesterday afternoon, however, it was still unclear what caused the blaze.
Vendors speculated that it could be caused by an electrical short-circuit, while Greene said that he was informed that "people were here welding during the course of the night, so I don't know if it was caused by the sparks from the welding".
Four fire units extinguished the blaze, which lasted about three hours, according to Greene.
"At present everybody (vendors) just want to clear the area, and after that we should have a meeting to see where we go from here, 'cause nobody is taking this lying down," said Michael Webb, data research manager at the Kingston and St Andrew Corporation Market Department.
Webb's sentiments were echoed by the dozens of vendors - who despite using shovels to clear away the charred, wet remnants of their goods - were determined to move on quickly.
"We have to do what we can do; we cannot sit down and wait like the rest. All we have to do is beg them send out some water trucks to help we wash out in here," shouted a female vendor. "Let we knock up back the little shops them, tie up back the tarpaulin and get back on we feet," she said.
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