News
A 37-year-old driver from Bois Jean Jean in Moruga lost everything but the clothes on his back after a fire completely destroyed his home before dawn on June 12.
Randy Lalla shared the three-bedroom wooden structure (20 feet × 30 feet) with a close relative, a 31-year-old who is an outpatient of the Psychiatric Ward at San Fernando General Hospital.
Lalla reported that around 3.15 am on June 12, he was on his way to work at a hardware when he received information that his house was ablaze.
He returned immediately and saw the house completely engulfed in flames.
It remains unclear if his relative was at home when the fire started.
The relative was later seen walking back and forth along the Moruga Main Road.
A team of fire officers led by FSO Wellington of the Mon Repos Fire Station extinguished the fire, but the structure and its contents were also destroyed.
T&TEC personnel also responded and disconnected the electricity supply to the ruins of the house.
The value of the house was yet to be determined, and the cause was unknown.
Acting Cpl Sookdeo and PC Loutan of the Moruga Police Station were among the first responders.
Acting Cpl Sookdeo is continuing investigations.
Moruga/Tableland MP Michelle Benjamin took to Facebook on June 13 to highlight the loss suffered by the two constituents.
She said alderman Phillip Gonzales of the Princes Town Regional Corporation and a community activist visited the scene.
“Yesterday, Disaster Management and Security Committee chairman Alderman Gonzales, community activist Nathaniel “Base” Malchan and Self Help field officers visited the home of a recent fire victim within the Moruga area to assess the damages and to offer support.”
The fire brough renewed attention to fire service challenges in the region. In July 2024, the Princes Town fire station, which services areas as far as Moruga, closed due to the building’s deteriorating conditions and rat infestations that rendered it inhabitable.
The closure has left several families vulnerable due to the longer wait time for fire officers to respond.
On June 11, Homeland Security Minister Roger Alexander led a delegation to a proposed site for a new temporary fire station at Torrib Trace in New Grant, Princes Town.
The ministry issued a statement saying the visit was a “decisive move to strengthen national emergency response infrastructure.”
The delegation included permanent secretary Videsh Maharaj and officials from the Property and Real Estate Division of the Ministry of Public Administration, the Land Settlement Agency and the National Agriculture Marketing and Development Corporation (Namdevco).
The statement added that the visit underscored the government’s urgent commitment to restoring and enhancing fire and emergency services in the southern region after last year’s closure of the former station.
Trinidad and Tobago Newsday
