Fire Engulfs BELARGO Printing Outlet in Belize City

A typical workday at the printing outlet BELARGO in Belize City, ended in disaster today after the building caught fire. Authorities arrived at the business located on Park Avenue in the Buttonwood Bay, Belize City, shortly after two-thirty this afternoon to find the interior engulfed in flames. The staff said they heard a strange popping sound coming from inside the building and shortly after, the fire broke out. Love News spoke with Margaret Usher, who has been working at the business to assist her neighbor, Lawrence Craig who owns the business. Usher said the morning went by without incident; however, when they returned from lunch, they knew the strange sound was cause for concern. Usher says the situation grieves her because she feels it could have been avoided if authorities had arrived earlier than they did. 

Margaret Usher: “Mr.Lago’s office, the printing office I work over there and this afternoon one o’clock when I went back to work me and his son were in the office and all of a sudden we heard “pop” “pop” and I told him this does not sound right let me try to get the electricity board. Called the electricity board the number said “go to 1, go to 2, go to 3.” we tried to get the fire service the fire service has to go through police and go through a whole lot of things I don’t understand why that but that is the operating system. Alright finally when the house was under blaze we finally tried to get the electricity board where they came and cut the wire from at the top there. But the fire started in the left side of the house where all the  batteries and the generators are that’s where the fire started because afterwards we were in there and the son said like this “that fume, I cannot stand to smell the fumes let’s go outside.” I siad alright let’s go outside but I didn’t want to go outside because I wanted to know what caused the popping. The electricity board didn’t come, the fire service didn’t come until long afterwards the whole house was on fire then the fire service came.”

Reporter: Around what time would you say that they got here ? 

Margaret Usher:  “Honestly and truly my brother I don’t even know because we just rushed out. I said about after two because I get there one o’clock, twenty past one and we’re sitting there so it’s about after two. The fire service didn’t come until abut two thirty, three.”

Reporter: There were only two of you in the building at the time ? 

Margaret Usher:  “Only two of us were in the building at the time.”

Reporter: And none of you were injured.
Margaret Usher:  “None of us were injured because we came out before it started to happen. It’s really I feel so bad because I was holding over from my neighbor he went to Guatemala for a sport right and I was holding over for him. To see that this happened it’s nothing for my fault but I feel so bad for him because we have a lot of things in that place that are very expensive. Very good machines that he does his printing with and all of them were destroyed.”

Craig’s home which is attached to the rear of the building was not damaged.