Nursing school loses 3 buildings in blaze

Three buildings at the Katereda Nursing School in Oro Bay, Northern, were destroyed by fire on Tuesday, Popondetta police said.
Provincial police commander Chief Inspector Lincoln Gerari said the fire started from the deputy principal’s house and spread to the students’ dormitory and library.
He said the police were investigating  and had been requested help from the Fire Department in Port Moresby.
Gerari said the cause of the fire was not known but it started at 5pm when the school’s generator was turned on.
He said when the power was turned on, all other buildings had lit up except for the three buildings and then fire started from the deputy principal’s house.
“Since Popondetta Fire Station does not have any equipment, nothing could be done to save the buildings,” Gerari said.
“The situation was made worse by the fact that Oro Bay is quite isolated from Popondetta town and there was nothing much they could do.
“The incident happens within three weeks after three buildings in Popondetta town were burnt to the ground.
“We are concerned about these kinds of fire and therefore have written to the Fire Department in Port Moresby to send officers to investigate,” Gerari said.
He expressed disappointment that the fire station in Popondetta was not serving its purpose because of lack of funding.
Gerari said the fire station was without a fire truck and no proper equipment like hose for putting out fires was available.
Gerari said the estimated cost for the buildings was about K200,000.