ONE WOMAN HAS LOST more than $10 000 after all the work she put into remodelling her uninsured home went up in flames Wednesday evening.
Claudette Allen said when the news reached her in Brooklyn, New York, it hit her so hard she contemplated suicide.
“I went to church, and the priest had to keep an eye on me so I didn’t leave, because I was talking how I didn’t want to live any more,” she said.
Allen was speaking to the WEEKEND NATION shortly after arriving in Barbados and visiting the scene of the fire.
“I was here in April and spent thousands on new windows and linoleum, as well as on building on a part in the back for myself with a toilet and bath. But now I only have the US$1 000 in my pocket,” she said.
Allen said she was hoping to leave the United States in December and live in Barbados; but now those plans have changed. She didn’t want “to work hard” in the US anymore.
Along with the house, Allen lost the neighbouring shop and almost all of its contents.
She said she had to go back to work in the United States and had only until Tuesday or Wednesday in Barbados.
She said she would appreciate if anyone could donate plywood or galvanised sheets so she could place a barrier around the remains of her house.
Prepare a meal
Her daughter Melinda Williams operates the shop. She said she had left the shop to prepare a meal and to get ready to pick up her children when a neighbour ran over shouting.
“Somebody ran up and told my husband the back of the house was on fire. When I came out, I saw fire coming from the kitchen windows,” she said.
Williams said the house was occupied by her nephew Oce Mapp, 22; his girlfriend and their baby; her daughter Ashley Williams, 18; and her niece Shaki Craig, 16.
None of them were available for comment. Allen said they were staying with relatives. (CA)
