Fire totally destroys house at Au Cap |22 November 2022

What remained of the house after the fire (Photo: Joena Meme)

● Estimated loss of over R2 million, says owner

Fire completely destroyed a two-bedroom house at Au Cap, belonging to captain Robert Marie, yesterday morning.

The place was home to Nigel Vidot and his wife and child, as well as an expatriate worker.

According to Mr Vidot who spoke to Seychelles NATION yesterday afternoon, he was the only person in the house at the time of the incident.

“It was between 11.30am and 11.45am and I was resting, when I was woken up by a loud popping sound and that is when I noticed smoke coming out from under the door and up to the ceiling,” Mr Vidot told Seychelles NATION.

Mr Vidot said he quickly attempted to put out the fire using a nearby hose but to no avail as the water pressure was low and the fire had spread quickly.

“My colleagues who were working nearby alerted the fire services but by the time they reached the place, it had already been engulfed as it was partially made of wood,” explained Mr Vidot.

Although he has not been able to ascertain what may have started the fire, he said it could have started from a small office that was also located in the house.

The owner, Mr Marie, said there were some new valuable equipment which had just arrived in the country and had been stored in the house, and he estimated the financial loss to be over R2 million.

Meanwhile, Mr Vidot said he was not able to save any of his personal belongings. He had just moved into the house, belonging to his step-father three months ago.

When Seychelles NATION reached the site yesterday, officers of the Seychelles Fire and Rescue Services Agency were collecting evidence at the scene.

Patsy Canaya