Efforts being made to contain the fire.
From left: Inspector Chief of Basic Police Care Robelto Hodge, officer Frank Nous and officer Lenaldo Courtar having a discussion after the fire.
A KPCN police officer investigating the fire.
- EUSTATIUS–Four rental vehicles, including an SUV, were consumed by a large fire of unknown origin on John E. Mars Road in the wee hours of Wednesday morning.
Brandweer Caribbean Netherlands, St. Eustatius received a call about the fire from dispatch Bonaire around 2:59am. The Fire Department arrived on the scene at 3:12am and officers went to work to battle the huge blaze. Officers from two shifts from the Fire Department were on the scene with two fire trucks. At one point, the firefighters connected the fire truck to the fire hydrant as the water level in the truck started to deplete.
During the fire, there were explosions and glass from the vehicles was seen flying in every direction. At one point during the fire, the blaze was so high that the roof of the nearby building started to ignite. The Fire Department then started wetting the building. The burning vehicles were parked near a building which houses an office and a Chinese supermarket.
A large crowd gathered at the scene and many spectators had their mobile phones out recording the incident. Persons in the surrounding area reported hearing loud explosions. One resident said they assumed that the shop owner was setting off fireworks.
The fire was largely contained to the four vehicles. The exterior of the building suffered minimum damage. The interior was unscathed. Fire Department shift leader Renee Courtar was seen using special equipment to ensure that the fire was completely out before leaving the scene.
The owners of the building and the vehicles were at the scene of the incident. After the Fire Department left the area, the owner of the building was seen entering the property and inspecting the surroundings before leaving the area.
After daybreak Wednesday, a police officer was seen at the scene carrying out investigations. The area where the fire occurred was also cordoned off. No one was injured as a result of the fire and the cause of the fire is not yet known. The supermarket was open for business as usual on Wednesday.
At the scene of the fire were St. Eustatius Fire Chief André Bennett; Inspector Chief of Basic Police Care Robelto Hodge; members of the Royal Dutch Marechaussee and Korps Police Caribbean Netherlands St. Eustatius.
Source: The Daily Herald https://www.thedailyherald.sx/islands/93415-four-rental-vehicles-consumed-by-large-fire-early-wednesday
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