Five Months Later, Fire Victim Still Needs Help

Nearly five months after an early morning fire reduced their home to ashes, one Belize City family is still rebuilding from scratch and is appealing to the public for help to finish what they started.

Fire victim Ashanti Garnett said she and her four-year-old daughter escaped the blaze on Good Friday with only a blanket after flames tore through their home while her husband was at work.

“It was one a.m. when I woke up… I saw the entire half of the house was under flame, so I just got my baby and we ran out of the house,” she said.

The Fire Department later determined the blaze was caused by an electrical surge. “It was a complete, complete loss,” Garnett added. We even had a few house pets inside that died.”

The family now rents a single room while trying to rebuild. Garnett, a nail technician who also lost her home-based business, said the financial burden has become overwhelming.

Now, Garnett is appealing directly to the public for help. “Even if it’s one or two by four… even if it’s a stove… I ask anything, and I would appreciate that.”