DEVASTATING

After spending nearly a month expanding his one-bedroom home, all Shadane Francis’ hard work has gone up in smoke after a raging fire consumed his home on Monday morning.

Too shaken up by the incident to summon the strength to sift through the charred rubble, the Rae Town, Kingston resident told The Gleaner that the room was partitioned and shared with his nephew, a grade 11 student at the Donald Quarrie High School.

All the youngster’s school supplies, including textbooks, notes and other materials he was using to prepare for the May-June sitting of the Caribbean Secondary Education Certificate exams next year, were destroyed.

Francis, a construction worker, was overwhelmed with emotion on Monday as he recalled the events which unfolded before his eyes hours earlier. He could not help but shed a few tears at the gravity of his loss.

“It rough, man, inna di holiday ya,” he said in between snuffles and in utter disbelief.

He explained that while sitting in a nearby pub, he heard the cries of residents in the area that his house was on fire.

As he was not too far away, Francis explained that he ran swiftly to save any of his and his nephew’s belongings while also beckoning others for assistance.

“Mi turn idiot, y’know, and run out. ‘Cause from mi hear dem a scream and mi hear a fire, mi just run out ... come all the way ‘round here so and mi see the pillow a bun and the curtain ketch afire and the bed ketch afire,” he recalled.

But one resident stated that the smoke coming from the dwelling was too thick, posing a challenge as they tried to get through the bedroom door.

With the water pressure from the standpipe on the property low, he and Francis filled buckets in the nearby Kingston Harbour, running to and fro as they tried to douse the flames.

Their efforts proved futile despite also trying to use sand to put out the fire.

“Mi nah tell no lie, the people dem help me. All people weh mi don’t even know a jump pon housetop ‘cause mi deh deh a bawl out fi help,” Francis said.

Another resident said it was a scary experience.

“By the time mi and him run out and we ready fi throw the water, it done expand already,” she said.

Francis, who sustained minor burns to his hands and shoulders, lost all articles of clothing, furniture, appliances and other necessities. All that is left standing are concrete walls he managed to erect.

Francis is hoping that Jamaicans will assist him to acquire building materials to recover from this setback in the season of giving.

One of his neighbours said that Francis has often rendered assistance to others whose homes were on fire, helping them to save some of their possessions.

“Him well deserving of the help,” she said. “Please, mi a ask. Help him.”

His sister, Kadeisha Francis, shared similar sentiments, noting that it seemed to be her brother’s calling to give of his time and efforts willingly and without a second thought.

“Anything happen to people, him a go help. Him always deh pon the spot, like a fi him special gift that,” she said.

“Wah no kill we a go mek we stronger ... and mi a tell you say a something better him a go get because is a trying youth and him will work hard and him helpful,” she said, optimistic that his good deeds would return to him tenfold.

A member of the Jamaica Fire Brigade informed The Gleaner that an emergency team responded to the call at 10:37 a.m. One unit from the Rollington Town Fire Station was first on the scene, followed by another from the York Park Fire Station.

The cause of the fire, the representative said, remains undetermined.

asha.wilks@gleanerjm.com

How you can help

Those willing to assist Shadane Francis can contact his sister, Kadeisha Francis, at (876) 821-2828 or his mother, Carol Dudley, at (876) 542-0682.