It stood on Albert Street as a pillar of Belize’s commercial culture for well over half a century and on Wednesday night the Ro-Mac’s building was devoured by a fire within hours. And tonight we learn that what is left of the Ro-Mac’s building will be gone within a month. The demolition began on Saturday and our camera was there as a contractor and his crane used a three ton anvil to demolish the façade of the three storey building. No small feat as the original frame of the building – was erected with 18-inch thick bricks. We spoke to owner Umesh Mahitani about what’s next.
Umesh Mahitani, Owner – Ro-Mac’s
“Friday evening we met with the Mayor and she asked if we could take down the front wall. She and her engineers thought it was dangerous so we complied and got to work immediately on it and were able to get it done by yesterday, mid-afternoon thereabout, and they opened the street last night so that we could have free traffic today.”
Keith Swift,
So what’s next?
Umesh Mahitani,
“We are just going to wait for settlement and try to get ready to be rebuild.”
Keith Swift,
Have you worked out how much you lost?
Umesh Mahitani,
“We got a basic idea but it is not something I could reveal to you.”
Keith Swift,
How about the investigation into the cause of the fire. How is that going?
Umesh Mahitani,
“It is ongoing and I think there is more investigators that came in so we are happy to get that done.”
Keith Swift,
A burning question is talk out there you set this fire intentionally. What is your response to that?
Umesh Mahitani,
“I couldn’t possibly do that. There is no way I could possibly do that. How would I even look at Belizean people again, how would I even look at my family again? How could I do that? That’s just not possible. People who know me personally would definitely dispel that immediately and you could ask anybody that knows me well and they will dispel that immediately. That is not even a concern of mine. But if the belief is out there, everybody has a right to their own opinion – opinion you have a right to that, if it is the last thing you have a right to – you have a right to your opinion.”
Keith Swift,
But the talk is that you did it for the insurance money.
Umesh Mahitani,
“I don’t need it. Why would I do that? Put 32 people out of work, displace so many businesses – just not right.”
The building was originally owned by Carlos Abdo who sold textiles. In the 1950s he rented it to the MacNab family which is when it became the “Ro-Mac’s” Supermarket. The MacNab family bought the building in the early 1970s and owned it until 1999 when they sold it.
In related news, the City Council today announced that while Albert Street has been reopened to vehicular and pedestrian traffic, pedestrians are asked to use side walks on the left hand side of Albert Street – that is the side of the street where the buildings were not destroyed by the fire.
