By Belize Live News Staff: What began as a single fire quickly turned into a nightmare for residents of San Pedro Columbia, as flames tore through the village Tuesday afternoon, destroying 13 homes.
By 3:00 p.m., desperate calls for help were already circulating, with residents urging others to come with buckets and assist in controlling the blaze. According to villager Nayomi Lara, the fire spread rapidly, jumping from one house to the next as strong winds fueled its path.
“We need water… we need as much people with buckets,” she pleaded, describing how the fire began with one structure before engulfing multiple homes across the community.
With no immediate response from fire services, villagers were forced to act on their own, forming bucket brigades in a race against time.
Relief eventually came when additional help arrived, including trained rangers from the Ya’axché Conservation Trust, who assisted in bringing the fire under control.
The full extent of the damage is still being assessed, but for many families, the loss is already devastating.
