The incident occurred after 7:00 p.m. on José Gabriel García Street, in front of San José Park
SANTO DOMINGO - In the blink of an eye, five families were left homeless last night after a raging fire destroyed their roofs, an incident caused, according to neighbors, by a high voltage, in the Colonial City.
“It smells like something’s burning, it smells like something’s burning,” was the desperate cry of Alejandro Beras’ wife that made them run out of their house in search of the reason for the stench that in a few minutes turned into a fire that devoured the homes of five families, including their own.
Just centimeters from his house, flames were consuming the residence of one of his neighbors who, according to statements, "had his television explode" and from there the fire started.
The incident occurred after 7:00 p.m. on José Gabriel García Street, in front of San José Park, and after about 20 minutes of work, the National District Fire Department (CBDN) completely controlled the flames.
Although the official causes are under investigation, residents claim it was due to high voltage.
Only the frame remained of the structure, the concrete edges, stained black by the flames that did manage to reduce to rubble the interior of wood and zinc that the firefighters were removing.
According to the District Fire Chief, José Luis Frometa Herasme, who specified that nine units were involved in the operation, there were no serious injuries, except for one person with a minor injury.
Regarding this, community members said it was the same person whose device exploded and that it was because "he couldn't get out on his own due to the surprise.".
From 9:30 onwards, the brigades carried out work typical of the debris reduction phase, while those affected tried to distribute what little they had left in their neighbors' homes.
In front of the residences, debris piled up, along with the shocked and hopeless faces of those who thought they would sleep under a roof that in minutes collapsed almost above them.
Text with modifications taken from Listín Diario.
