Fire victim’s family in shock

Carol Alleyne’s family is still struggling to come to grips with her tragic death in a house fire last Saturday night.
While going through the rubble of what remained of the house in Hill View Road, Marley Vale, St Philip where the 67-year-old lived, Alleyne’s youngest sister Jacqueline Leacock told Barbados TODAY on Sunday evening the family was still in shock.
“I have not slept since. My blood pressure is really high,” she said before becoming overwhelmed with emotion.
Alleyne’s charred remains were found in the bathroom of one of the two houses razed by a fire that was reported to the Barbados Fire Service around 8:51 p.m. and extinguished about two hours later. She lived with her son, Winston Alleyne.
Police are investigating the cause of the fire.
“I want justice for my sister,” Leacock declared.
She said the other house destroyed in the blaze was a family residence which had important memories for her and her seven siblings.
Leacock described her eldest sister as a fun-loving and strong person, noting that she raised all her siblings from a young age.
She also disclosed that Alleyne was a breast cancer survivor. She said her sister had been born with fluid on her brain and due to her disability, did not work.
However, Leacock said, Alleyne would receive assistance from relatives and others in the community.
(SZB)