Three girls perished in a fire at the youth hostel on Saturday - and tonight, we're all still grappling to come to terms with the tragedy. It's the second serious fire there in eight months - and the third in five years - but this one is different because three girls, one 14 and two 16, were burnt to death inside their small room. We'll have every detail on the fire tonight, and a breakdown of all that went wrong that led to their cruel deaths - but first we turn our attention to their families.
14 year old Elizabeth Mckoy, and 16 year old Shadisha Arnold and Anna Carlos were in the hostel as troubled girls - but their families never could have expected their lives to end in a burning dorm building. Today, Courtney Weatherburne spoke to the mothers of the deceased:...
Courtney Weatherburne reporting
It is among all this scorched debris that the young girls' bodies were found huddled in a corner.
The beds they once slept in are now blackened iron frames stacked against each other.
The clothes they once wore are now tossed on the ground - tattered and singed.
And the Science and Math Books they once read and studied from are now ripped apart and frayed.
The only thing remaining are these charred cement partitions …and the horrific memory of the lives that were lost in the fire.
It's a memory the families of Ana Carlos, Elizabeth Mckay and Shadisha Arnold will have to live with forever. Arnold's mother was the first we spoke with on the scene on Saturday evening.
Audrey Arnold, Mother of Shadisha Arnold
"I want to know why they couldn't open the door to get the children out of the building. Because they called us and told us about the fire. Apart from that we don't know anything else about the fire. My brother-in-law called me and told me about the fire."
Jules Vasquez
"So what do you know at this point?"
Audrey Arnold, Mother of Shadisha Arnold
"We don't know anything. All they say is that the bodies were still burning. That's all. Nobody came to me and told me anything."
And so today Arnold and the other family members went searching for answers.
Courtney Weatherburne
"When was she sent to the Youth Hostel?"
Patricia Trujillo, Mother of Ana Carlos
"When she was 15 years old she went to the hostel."
Courtney Weatherburne
"Tell us more information about your daughter. Why was she sent there? Did you sent her to the Youth Hostel?"
Patricia Trujillo, Mother of Ana Carlos
"Because she was misbehaving and she likes to run away from my sister, so we just decide to let her go there."
Courtney Weatherburne
"When was the last time you spoke with her or you saw Ana?"
Patricia Trujillo, Mother of Ana Carlos
"A year ago when she ran away and came to look for me at my house and the next day they found her and they took her back."
Courtney Weatherburne
"So she has run away from the Youth Hostel before?"
Patricia Trujillo, Mother of Ana Carlos
"Yes. About 7 times she ran away."
"I want to know why they locked her up and they didn't have anyone to watch over them. They should have had somebody to watch them if they locked them up - some guard or someone to be there to see what they were doing. I really don't know how I will continue on with the loss of my daughter. I love my daughter. They took her away from me. They sent her there and I couldn't do anything." [Crying]
Victoria Mckoy Claunch, Mother of Elizabeth Mckoy
"My little angel, she was smart, sweet and beautiful. She was my everything. I was blessed the day I was conceived with that little angel. She was so smart and beautiful and I was so worried that she like to take her little walk and then I don't know. God is our everything. So I don't know why I turned to Human Services. I don't know why I did it, but I gave it a try. Then she was with them and then she ran away to me and she told me all these crazy things and then I found out that some of these things were true and so I decide to keep her home. But every time I keep her, they bring force with the police to come and take her. Every time, every time and then I am so sorry I took her there. Because she was loved and she had everything she needed. So I am sorry my baby Liz. I am so sorry. Then she got burned. I am so sorry that I put her there. She was my everything."
Courtney Weatherburne
"When was the last time you actually saw her?"
Victoria Mckoy Claunch, Mother of Elizabeth Mckoy
"I saw her the last time thank God, because they put her at a different institution and every time I go and ask to see my baby, "oh no, don't go there." I don't know why they didn't want me to see my baby. Thank God she was at somewhere in Belize City and she needed some kind of assistance with something and she said "mommy I am here, come and see me." on Thursday this week and thank God I got to see her."
Charles Galvez, Uncle of Elizabeth Mckoy
"My niece had been burnt up. But I don't think that the institution intentionally did that. An error occurred and you should also look at the people who were there at the time when this incident happened. We should not crucify them as they are evil people. Something went wrong. There is no way that those persons who were there at the time wanted this to happen."
Of note that is that 14-year-old Elizabeth McKoy's mother voluntarily put her into care of the Human Services Department and she had been at the hostel for two weeks. A police officer is currently on remand for an offence against her. The other 16 year olds were there at the order of the court.
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