Tragedy struck the carnival community this evening when a house fell on as many as 15 persons preparing costumes for tomorrow's road march. They were at the Dolphin Street Headquarters for the Soca Mocha Senior band when the house came crashing down off its stilts unto everyone who was working in the open area directly beneath the house. We do know that 39 year old Deborah Humes was very seriously injured. 7News arrived there shortly after the fall - and here's what we saw:...
Jules Vasquez, 7News
"How many people in all were injured?"
Victim #1
"A lot of people, about 15 people were underneath there doing costumes for the carnival march tomorrow."
Victim #2
"I'm not worrying about carnival though, people lives come first. I had a member that was trapped under the house, he ended up breaking his back but we got him out."
Shandy Tillett, Daughter of Homeowner
"My little sister Rosalind was coming towards my room and the house just collapsed, she got the opportunity the crawl out but other people were in the house. A young lady, Debbie, the house was on her back. It seems that she's not okay, her back is supposed to be broken. My mom is hurt, her nose, I don't know if it's broke, but she's bleeding from her nose and it's swollen. Jules we went to NEMO over and over from the hurricane went. The lamp post pulled down my mom house on a slant. The house was leaning so we went to NEMO back and forth, they told us that they put it in housing hands. Housing still didn't come, I don't know if it's because we're PUP they don't want to help us Jules but all I'm asking is for them to assist us. This is too far gone now, they should have come. I went again in the week, I and my mom went last week Friday to tell them that the house is leaning and going over more. They told us to not let people in there but we have nowhere else to sleep. She wants to be here to watch her household stuff, she sleeps here, I sleep in my room at the back with my kids and that's about it but I don't know what else to say. I am begging for his help, I don't want to cry but it hurts. We were up and down to NEMO. NEMO should have come and assist us long time. Hurricane went a month ago now, they should have come to help."
Again, Deborah Humes was seriously injured. Humes was one of the 15 or 20 persons making last minute preparations for the Soca Mocha band under the house when it fell. Tonight the band is devastated by the loss, and they also lost many costumes. We spoke to the bandleader:...
Victim
"Jules we want them to know that we're still going out there on our road march. We have enough revvelers to get out there. They can think what they want, do what they want, that won't stop us."
Jules Vasquez, 7News
"Explain to me how much of your costumes are trapped under the house."
Victim #2
"I'm not sure."
Jules Vasquez, 7News
"Months of work?"
Victim #2
"Two nights straight we haven't slept. I just went home 6 o'clock to give my kids money to school to come back here and meet the girls. Only I left to go and everyone was here working. I wasn't here just now, Bowen and Bowen just called to give us 50 bags of water. As I called and the taxi reached over there, they called me back, we came right through here."
Jules Vasquez, 7News
"You're confident that somehow you all will pull through for something tomorrow? You all are the defending champs."
Victim #2
"Yes sir, we need 100 revelers to compete and we will have 100 revelers."
At least four persons were taken away in the ambulance. Reports say that includes Marsha Smith who was making the mud for tomorrow's jouver't under the house. Now, there's a bigger dispute about whether NEMO failed to help this family who had a storm damaged house. Today Councilor Phillip Willoughby went to the scene to deflect the criticism that they had been excluded because of politics:...
Phillip Willoughby, City Councilor, CEMO
"They told me next week they would come fix, solve or resolve the issue with the house that is the truth. No politics? I just left the meeting and we get the sense that..."
Victim #3
"Alright please listen to me. Everyone knows this is carnival week, so they couldn't think about fixing anything carnival week when they know we have our group that goes out every year traditionally and you know nothing stop us from going out there. So they can say they're going to fix it this weekend, but look how long the hurricane went? You know how much houses, just roof got fixed that's not even necessary right now. This needed the attendance when it was leant over. People are here and have nowhere to go, were you going to put them somewhere?"
Phillip Willoughby, City Councilor, CEMO
"This situation isn't a political one, so let's rule that out, because I was the first one here. This week the NEMO engineers and other coordinators came, spoke with whoever was in the yard at the time and said to her, within this week to next week we would have attended to the home, correct?"
Victim #3
"I was not there, my sister went to the hospital because her nose broke, and that's why I'm talking to you."
Phillip Willoughby, City Councilor, CEMO
"Yes still when its next week, we will still come deal with the home."
Jules Vasquez, 7News
"We are in the Mesopotamia area, if these people were Mr. Finnegan's eyeball lets say, would help have been more expeditiously and more effectively delivered to them being that the storm passed 6 or 7 weeks ago?"
Phillip Willoughby, City Councilor, CEMO
"I wouldn't be able to speak on behalf of the honorable minister, but what I can say is just up the street, he had up a banner saying 'red or blue Finnegan is for you' so don't come here to play the politics with who is blue eye and who is favorite. Everybody is favorite."
Victim #3
"Mr. Finnegan and we are family, but he doesn't like our family because we are blue. I'm telling you, and he passed comment to my sister concerning her house more than one time."
Phillip Willoughby, City Councilor, CEMO
"All I can say is that NEMO will be here maybe over the weekend to next week and they'll fixed the home as planned. Unfortunately the home fell today for whatever reason, the structure was undermined. I am saying they will be here to deal with the home, bottom-line."
Victim #3
"But what happen to the people that died who were underneath?"
Jules Vasquez, 7News
"NEMO has to now fix a lot when it just might had to fix a little and avoided the grave injury to persons. Should NEMO have acted more expeditiously?"
Phillip Willoughby, City Councilor, CEMO
"I am saying they were forewarned by the experts and engineers. Warnings were given, you homor those warnings until the requisite qualified people to deal with the structure, could have dealt with it. That's all I'm saying."
Victim #3
"Well I am saying, I feel like they should have worked faster because you guys explained it to my sister, but I know she explained to you that she has nowhere to go and she needs the place. So you can say whatever, you have your nice house where you live in, all of you."
Phillip Willoughby, City Councilor, CEMO
"Now your mistaken sir, that isn't true. Ma'am I am saying, regardless of political sway, the people's home will be dealt with."
And while the fingers are pointing - tonight, reliable reports say that one woman who was under the house is not dead, but seriously injured. We stress, reports form the Mas Camp said she was dead, but she is not. She is injured. At the scene we learned that she was crushed under one of the cross beams for the house, and basically the whole weight of the house fell on her. Debbbie Humes was an active member of the Socah Mocha crew. The carnival Band association is in an emergency meeting at this hour to discuss how this will affect tomorrow's carnival road march. Soca Mocah is the defending Senior champion.