‘I didn’t save anything’
Grandmother appeals for help after fire razes two-bedroom house in Salt Spring
Published:Friday | April 26, 2024 | 12:05 AMChristopher Thomas/Gleaner Writer
WESTERN BUREAU:
LESS THAN two weeks after a fire of reportedly malicious origin completely engulfed her two-bedroom house in Salt Spring, St James, 48-year-old Danette Smith is issuing a heartfelt appeal for help to rebuild so she and her two-year-old grandson can get back on their feet.
Smith, who has lived in the community for five years prior to her devastating loss, showed The Gleaner the charred remains of the house which she and her toddler grandson Omari Antwine shared with her church sister, Paula Harvey, up until April 10 when the blaze destroyed everything they owned.
“I went to church at the Truth and Righteousness Ministry in Montego Bay on April 10, in the evening. When I was coming back from church, somebody told me that my house was on fire, and when I went there, I saw the fire truck. I didn’t save anything; everything for me and my grandson got burned up,” Smith said reflectively.
“I am now staying with a friend, but it is not comfortable, but I have to just stay there. If I can get blocks, cement, doors, anything to start over, I would be grateful, because I have to start over from scratch. I don’t have any family nearby, I’m a stranger here,” Smith continued, noting that she has had custody of her grandson due to his mother suffering ill health.
Smith says the fire destroyed everything of value in the dwelling, including her grandson’s birth papers, their clothes, and other belongings. The only things she and little Omari now have are the clothes on their backs.
Regarding the origin of the fire, Smith speculated that it may have stemmed from a previous dispute she had with another resident in the area, which she reported to the police.
“A young man came to my yard sometime ago, and I told him he must not come here because this place is mine, and he came like he is a badman. I know where it is coming from, but I leave everything to God, because the police said I didn’t see anyone, so they don’t have any strong evidence. I got a letter from the police, concerning the fire, and I picked it up on Friday (April 19) to carry to the parish council,” said Smith, referencing the St James Municipal Corporation.
SLEEPING AT WORKPLACE
Harvey, 57, who also lost all of her clothes in the fire, admitted that since then she has had to sleep at her workplace in the Catherine Hall community in Montego Bay.
“I was at work, and I just heard that the house was on fire. All I know is that the place burned down and everything burned up; it’s mostly clothes I lost. Since the fire, it’s my workplace I stay at, because I can’t go home because I have nowhere to stay,” said Harvey. “I think I have been living in Salt Spring for about three years, and I was living with Sister Smith for about two years, and she was living there before me.”
When contacted, Pastor Velma Campbell, the host pastor of the Truth and Righteousness Ministry which was founded in 2015 and where Smith and Harvey both worship, admitted that the church’s capacity to assist with rebuilding is limited.
“Sis Smith told me about it, but ours is a young ministry, yet we will try to do whatever we can do to help. The reaction we had when we heard of the fire was the same reaction about any accident, a common feeling like anything else,” said Campbell. “We wish that community people would not take action in their hands, and when things like this happen, we believe that as children of God, we always pray about issues like these and ask God to intervene in it.”
For Smith, her faith in God is her current source of sustenance, even as she asks anyone who can give her employment or physical help with rebuilding to get in touch with her.
“If I eat anything, I give my grandson. I went and did some work last week Thursday (April 18), and I bought his tin feed. I wash clothes and take care of him; but even his immunisation card and age papers were burned up. It is hard, but I give God thanks that life was saved,” said Smith.
“We have life, so the Lord will provide; so we have to have faith just like how Jesus had faith. Every night I sleep on the floor, because I have no bed, but one day I will have a bed,” Smith added.
Persons wishing to assist can contact Danette Smith at 876-852-1596 or Paula Harvey at 876-821-3937.