Easter Sunday Fire Leaves Two Families Displaced 

Two Belize City families have lost everything after a devastating fire tore through their duplex home on New Road on Easter Sunday.

The blaze broke out shortly after 11:00 a.m. in the area behind Dario’s Meat Pie Bakery on Quallos Alley, destroying both sides of the building.

Melonie Bowen, who lived on one side of the building with her three sons, said she noticed smoke moments before the fire spread. “I saw smoke coming… and I said, man, this can’t be a fire again,” she told News 5 as she recalled the same property left damaged by fire in May 2017.

Bowen said her sons were at home, but they managed to escape safely before the flames spread.

“We had other people came to help and assist us. The fire truck got there after 20, 25 minutes. So, therefore, we lost everything,” Bowen said. “The back part burnt down the top, and the bottom is burnt, burnt. Nothing saved.”

Meanwhile, the Scott family, who occupied the other side for almost 20 years, were not home at the time. “I was at San Pedro working. And my father and my brother were at church, so no one wasn’t home,” Anthony Scott told News 5.

He added, “The loss is critical because everything get burnt. Only the clothes on our back is what we were left with.” Scott said their family was just starting to get back on their feet after 2017’s fire incident, “to be right back to the same situation again, it’s not a nice feeling.”

Both families are now displaced and appealing for help.

Bowen said she is in need of essentials, but most importantly, a mattress, sheets, towels, and any school utensils that can help her boys ages 16, 11 and 1. “I am just devastated right now,” she said.

Meanwhile, Scott said, “Anything would be appreciated… Lucky thing for me, I was working for four days so I had a bag of clothes I can change in. But aside from that, everything, everything gone. It’s a total loss.”

The cause of the fire remains under investigation, though both families suspect possible electrical issues.

Anyone wishing to assist the Scott and Bowen families can reach out directly to Anthony Scott at 605-1185 or Melonie Bowen at 611-9611 or 224-5025.