fire victims needs help

Fire victims seek help

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“The lights were off. There was no electricity and I was forced to light a candle. I fell asleep and the next thing I knew there was fire all over the place..." These words describe the shock experienced by Sadia Isaacs, as she wipes her tears away, speaking about her traumatic experience when her Woodstock home burned down on Saturday 28 May.
Isaacs said that when she put the half-finished candle in a saucer on the day at approximately 9h30 before going to sleep, four hours later she awoke to one of the most horrific scenes she has ever experienced in life. “There were flames all over, I could hardly see in front of me. All I could hear was the screams of neighbours trying to get me out. Then I managed to get the door open and Petrous, who was inside the house, tryed to get me out. His face and hands burned...”
Petrous Wilson, 42, said that when he noticed Isaac's house burning, he ran across the street shouting as he thought the children where stuck inside the house. “I always get food from Aunty Sadia and she’s always helpful. When I saw the house burning I thought to my self, 'I am not going to let this people die' and I ran to get help,” he recalled.
He was forced to enter from the back as the front part of the house was completely locked down. He managed to get Isaac’s out of the house safely, scarring himself in the blaze. Isaacs said that she was glad her children were at a family member’s house when the incident occurred. The family has however lost everything that was inside the house including the children’s school uniform.
She is urgently looking for donations and help from the community to help them get back on their feet. “Everything was burnt out, as well as my children’s school clothes. Alhamdulilah, they received school uniforms last week from my sister whose children also attend the same school. I am not asking for much of the community but to at least consider my children and the most important thing I would say I’m desperate for is a roof over our heads,” she appealed.
Isaacs said that she is urgently trying to get a roof for the house due to her concerns of rainy weather flooding the premises. “We are still living in the burned place at the moment and if it should rain, the place would be flooded,” she said. Since her interview on VOC’s Afternoon Cruise last month, there has been a lot of response and people coming forward to help.
“There was a couple of 'boetas and tieties' who came to see what we need and said that they going to try and help us out in anyway possible. Alhamdulilah, my eldest daughter has also been bringing the little ones food to eat and taking much care of us during this hard time,” she said. In the meantime, Isaacs said that they are pleading to the community to come out and support them in any way possible.
“I am concerned about my children. No one in our household works and it’s been hard since 2008 when my husband passed away. We do not look at what you give us, but will appreciate it. Your support will be of great help to my little family Inshallah,” she said. If you would like to contribute towards the Isaacs family, you can contact Sadia or Aasia Isaac’s on 084 086 9187 or 079 646 9425. VOC (Aishah Cassiem)