A Lake Independence family is home-less and without possessions after
a fire consumed their home and everything inside last night. And tonight, the
Fire Department is reporting that Marcelo Montejo and his family were the victims
of more than just a terrible misfortune; their home fire was caused by negligence.
The fire started around ten on Periwinkle Street and 7News found out that what
started the blaze could have happened to many people, as it is the result of
a continued unsafe practise by hundreds of families in Belize.
Kenneth Mortis, Fire Department
“We learnt that the house was occupied by Mr. Montejo along with his
wife and three children. Apparently they were sleeping when Mr. Montejo was
awoken by a glare coming from the rear of the house. When he got up to take
a further look he saw that the kitchen was on fire. He exited the building along
with his two year old child and as a result the fire destroyed the building.
Also the investigation revealed that the fire started as a result of negligent
use of an extension cord. The extension cord was used to provide electricity
from an outlet to the refrigerator which in turn had a breakdown and started
the blaze.”
Jacqueline Godwin,
“Which is a common practice here in Belize.”
Kenneth Mortis,
“A common practice that we at the Fire Department try to stress to
homeowners not to practice. Based on this, Mr. Montejo’s lost suffered
losses to his entire contents were in the building which amounted somewhere
between $45,000 to $50,000. We cannot stress the importance in regarding the
overloading of the common extension cords. There is nothing wrong with using
extension cords, they do have heavy duty extension cords which can be purchased
at any of the hardware stores.”
Jacqueline Godwin,
“So what was he using? The ordinary brown or white extension cords?”
Kenneth Mortis,
“Ordinary brown or white extension cords.”
The house and its contents were not insured.
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