Exhausted Pearnel Charles Arcade vendors struggle to recover

With just a week until Christmas, some of the 54 vendors whose stalls and merchandise worth millions of dollars were destroyed by a fire at the Pearnel Charles Arcade in downtown Kingston on November 18 have struggling to get back on his feet.

The fire was concentrated at the north end of the arcade, where the damage was noted. The 54 sellers operated on more than 100 stands.

The south end was not affected and on Wednesday, when the Jamaica Observer I visited the arcade, it was business as usual for the vendors operating in this section. For the most part, southerners were busy catering to the floods of customers looking to buy shoes and clothes for Christmas.

While some of the 54 sellers affected in the North Tier seemed perplexed and unsure how they would bounce back, others said they were determined not to be left behind. They said they had families to feed and, in the midst of charred metal stalls and rubble, they sought to redevelop their sales spaces as best they could to capitalize on last minute sales before Christmas.

“From there, there’s life, there’s hope, man,” said a seller affected by the fire. He explained that after his stock of clothing and shoes was destroyed, he was forced to accept goods on credit.

Another shoe seller said he lost goods worth millions of dollars. He did not put a monetary value on his loss. Without help, he said he managed to clean his sales space, paint the walls and install new shelves to display the shoes for sale.

“Everyone is trying to recover now. The government gives nothing to anyone. Everyone says they are defending themselves. They say the building is insured but the contents are not insured. We were told it was high risk here so we couldn’t claim anything. I lost everything, millions of dollars in shoes. Here there were shoes that went up to the ceiling, and I had boxes with shoes that hadn’t been taken off yet.

“About four days ago I installed what you see here. I have to do what I have to do. Remember, we have children to feed, a family and a wife, so we have to be here. They say the government doesn’t owe us a living. We must live. The greatest thing is that we have life and we can come back strong and tell the story. If we manage to sell even one shoe, we still have to be in the hunt. People are distressed, man, just look at their faces,” he said.

He referred to the east end of the arcade which was destroyed by fire 12 years ago. He said that given the way things went after that fire, he was confident that nothing would happen to repair the roof and other areas damaged by the recent fire.

There was no roof on the east end and he said it was the fire 12 years ago that destroyed it. He said it was necessary for the government to help most people get back on their feet. His argument was that they had to pay weekly to use the arcade and had done so over the years and were confident that something could be done to help them.

“They didn’t even want to clean here. At least give us some relief, man. We know you’re strapped for money and everything, but please do something for us,” he said.

A seller said she lost $14 million worth of merchandise in the fire.

“They don’t give us anything. I’m selling shoes and pants and getting back into business. I’m committed to welding the place up, shelving it and starting life again,” she said.

Following the fire, the Divisional Commander of the Jamaica Fire Brigade’s Kingston and St Andrew Division, Chief Superintendent Patrick Gooden, said firefighters responded to a call at around 7:08 a.m. who had seen a unit from the Trench Town Fire Station. They were then assisted by firefighters from the Half-Way-Tree and York Park fire stations.