By Hassan I.Conteh (Editor)

Another fire outbreak has left many people homeless at Susan’s Bay community in central of Freetown.

The incident is said to have affected many houses as they are reduced to a rubble.

Residents of Susan’s Bay Tuesday 9 January saw a surprising inferno blowing away rooftops by a breeze.  The blazing fire lit up zinc houses into ashes.

Initial reports have not shown any death on Tuesday’s inferno but the consequence is huge on people as many lost valuables.

The last fire incident happened on 24 March 2021 and similarly no deaths were recorded. But the magnitude of the fire could not be exactly quantified.

“I lost about Le4 million and many properties”said a victim of 2021 Susan’s Bay fire incident.

Susan’s Bay community used to be a densely populated community.

But the community is almost dead and gone forever. The homes of inhabitants there are being destroyed completely.The second inferno on Tuesday 9 has further reduced the community to a grave site.

The relics of Susan’s Bay show a stark picture of neglect of a very deprived community.

Since the last fire blaze happened which put official figures at 1,597 households affected and 7,093 people displaced, victims of Susan’s Bay are living a very poor life than they were before the inferno.

The recent number of casualties have swelled up the already existing neglected victims.

“We were supplied tarpaulins, blankets and cooked food initially. But the supply had stopped long since,”explained a victim.

 

Life before the twin-inferno for Susan’s Bay-ers

Susan’s Bay community has suffered two outrageous fire disasters.

The first fire incident is said to be the most dangerous disaster that had happened in the community.

A renowned organisation at the community was helping in fire prevention exercise and organisation of  overcrowded homes.

Issa Kamara,a member of Israelites Development Association, recalled that flames of fires were common to see at Susan’s Bay partly because of the slum’s clustered homes. But he said those fire incidents occurred at minimal rate then unlike the major one on March 2021.

“We have no choice if government decides to evict us but I think that needs to be well-planned” he told me as a journalist on a special interview half a year before the first inferno happened on March 24.

Despite rehabilitation plans promised by central government,NGOs and other charitable organisations, the situation remains the same as victims still sleep on tent homes.

As promises to rejuvenate the slum community become unrealistic, Kamara, including others have fled to other places outside Freetown.

“I have been living in Waterloo.I don’t even aware of that fire outbreak yesterday,”Kamara talked through a phone call.