3 months ago
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Gopaul "Figgie" Ramnanan - THE burnt body of a pensioner at Indian Walk, Moruga, was found over the weekend after a housefire which also destroyed a neighbour's woodwork shed which reportedly had materials and equipment.
Gopaul "Figgie" Ramnanan, 67, of Third Company Road, in the Princes Town police district, died on the night of on August 2.
The house owner and farmer, Avinash Ramnath, 36, who lived in an adjoining three-bedroom wooden house at the front of the property, was not home at the time.
Apart from Ramnath, two male workers are now also homeless.
When Newsday visited the community on August 3, Ramnanan's daughter, Indra Ramnanan, said he was diabetic and had kidney problems, which had recently limited his mobility.
He was a father of seven and previously worked as a landscaper.
While at the ruins of his home on August 3, Ramnath recalled receiving a phone call around 7.20 pm from a neighbour informing him that his house was on fire.
Within minutes, he returned to find the entire house engulfed in flames.
Ramnath, a farmer, said he had been taking care of the pensioner for the past few years and had allowed him to stay in the back structure on his property. One of his workers also stayed with the pensioner, but no one else was at home at the time.
Unaware of the pensioner's whereabouts, Ramnath ran to the room to check on him. There, he found the burnt body partially on a bed. The body was reportedly burnt beyond recognition.
"I made some calls to let his family know what had happened," he said.
"I cannot say where or how the fire started because I was not here. Some say it was in the front, others say at the back."
No other injuries were reported.
Ramnath speculated that the fire might be linked to a dispute and mentioned that two days earlier, three of his dogs had been poisoned.
He recalled that Ramnanan had previously lived further along the street. He used to help him with food and supplies and eventually allowed him to stay on the premises. The deceased was a close friend of Ramnath's late father and was considered an uncle.
Investigators were told Ramnanan was last seen alive around 2.30 pm that day, sitting on the same bed where his body was later found.
Police confirmed that around 8.30 pm on August 2, PCs Khan, Marajh, and Ramsarran responded to the report of the fire.
FSO Medina and other fire officers from the Mon Repos Fire Station were already attempting to extinguish the flames. However, the structure was already destroyed.
Neighbour Ashton Knutt said he lost over $250,000 worth of electrical and woodwork equipment and other items in the fire. He believes the loss could have been avoided if there was a functioning fire station in Princes Town.
He said fire officers had to respond from Mon Repos, which is about 45 minutes to an hour away.
"It could have been worse. Could we have saved him? We do not know," he said.
"But if fire responders were there within 15 minutes or 20 minutes, the outcome could have been different."
Knutt, who operates an electrical and woodwork business, said his workmen would be unable to work because of the damage caused by the fire. He also lost products that were intended for customers.
"I do not know if they are going to come down on me to deliver. Life has to go on, but we have to get better."
The fire has brought renewed attention to fire service challenges in the region.
In July 2024, the Princes Town Fire Station, which services areas as far as Moruga, was closed because of deteriorating building conditions and rat infestations that rendered it uninhabitable.
The closure has left several communities vulnerable owing to longer response times.
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.
English (US) ·