George Street Fire, Part 2: Tales of arson and theft as Montserrat begins long recovery from blaze 

Second of a two-part series.

When morning broke in Montserrat on Friday, January 7, 1966, the evidence lay bare for all to see. A section of Plymouth resembled a scene from the Vietnam War that was raging 10,000 miles away. Once-thriving businesses were now hollowed-out shells. Entire second floors of buildings were gone, as if they never existed. Ash and debris littered the street. Stunned merchants and residents walked around slowly with hands on hips, shaking their heads as they quietly surveyed their losses.

Roosevelt “Cubby” Jemmotte, who lived with his mother, grandmother and two brothers on George Street just below Hamsey Allen’s store, recalled the aftermath 60 years later.

“We lost a lot,” he said. “We were renting at the time but we were planning to build our own house and had already bought a lot of the materials. They were stored under the house. Everything was burned.”

Teresa Pond-Moses, then 12, lived in Upper George Street. Her home was not burned, but the images are seared in her memory.

“For weeks we felt very sad,” she said. “When you passed certain areas of George Street everything was just black, and you could smell the smoke for the longest while.”

It’s profound fortune that no one died, considering the close calls that night. In one instance a firefighter slipped off a ladder while battling a second-story blaze and was left clinging to the fire hose, swaying uncontrollably as if he were “battling an Anaconda snake” according to a witness.

Some elderly folks who were awakened and told to evacuate initially refused, believing they were being robbed. They had to be lifted and carried to safety against their will.

The George Street Fire lasted about seven hours – an eternity when battling an inferno. It was a time for heroism but also an opportunity for misdeeds. Some saw the tragic fire as a windfall, and what Mother Nature didn’t claim that night, human nature often did.

OUTPOURING OF SUPPORT

The community response was overwhelmingly positive however. The government, banks, churches, Red Cross and other groups mobilized to assist the victims. A Fire Relief Fund was set up with Royal Bank of Canada and Barclays Bank. The treasurer was Paul Proudfoot, a native of Grenada who was branch manager at Royal Bank.

Alfred Christopher, a Montserrat Defense Force officer and popular calypso singer, organized a benefit concert at the Roman Catholic auditorium on George Street. The show featured a future legend: 16-year-old Alphonsus “Arrow” Cassell.

“I believe it was Arrow’s first time performing in public,” Christopher said. “We had several calypsonians and also a guy named Son Sheep [James Mason] who was a really good singer. We charged 50 cents admission. Even though a lot of people sneaked in we still raised more than $200. That tells you the kind of crowd we got.”

The fund-raising effort went international, with companies such as Pan Am Airways chipping in $350. Local nurse Patricia Griffin raised $242 collecting donations in tins . . . but that was just a drop in the bucket. The fire caused an estimated EC $1.25 million in damage, according to the Montserrat Mirror newspaper. That included property, personal effects and stock-in-trade. Adjusted for inflation, that equates to roughly $12.4 million in 2026.

The Fire Relief Fund eventually raised about $11,000. It is uncertain how the money was distributed and what, if any, criteria was used. But Jemmotte, whose entire family was displaced, said he never got a dime. Ironically, Jemmotte worked for an insurance company, but he sold life and health policies, not property coverage.

“My family members all went to live in different places after the fire,” said Jemmotte, who lived for a time in Kinsale with the family of J.W.R. Perkins, a former legislator and businessman who invented the popular liqueur Perks Punch.

The Perks Punch distillery was located on Chapel Street, not far from the fire, but was not damaged. The street was actually dubbed “Perkins Alley” by locals.

ARSON OR ACCIDENT?

As the smell of smoke lingered on George Street, so did questions. On Thursday, January 13, 1966, a Coroner’s Inquiry (with a jury) was held in order to determine the cause of the fire. Major Albert Bradford of the Barbados Fire Brigade was brought in as an expert witness. The only other testimony came from Karl Muller, whose business – the West Indies Packing Company – was located in the “Brother” Dan Fenton Building where the fire started.

According to the Montserrat Mirror, Bradford narrowed the cause of the fire to three scenarios: a lighted cigarette, faulty wiring or a deliberate act. With no conclusive evidence, the case was adjourned sine die – meaning it was dismissed indefinitely unless something arose that warranted a recall.

Muller was a native of Czechoslovakia (now Czech Republic). It’s unclear how he arrived in Montserrat but he apparently enjoyed living in the tropics instead of his frigid homeland and would tell friends: “If God meant for people to live in the cold he would have given Adam and Eve clothes.”

Muller’s business specialized in cold storage. He introduced Montserrat to imported frozen chicken and also catered to the wealthy, selling premium-cut meats, sausages, fancy cheeses and other products not usually available in Montserrat. He also sold milk that he pasteurized himself.

Muller reportedly stocked up heavily for the Christmas season, anticipating robust business. The common belief among those close to the incident was that, due to disappointing sales, Muller ignited the fire in order to cut his losses and collect the insurance.

Jemmotte, whose office at British-American Insurance was located across from Muller’s store, witnessed the early part of the fire. He is not convinced it was arson.

“I saw a bunch of small fires like sparks all over the building,” he said. “So it’s hard to imagine how one person did that. I’m not going to say it was [arson] because I don’t like to judge people. That whole thing was a mystery.”

To be clear, Muller was never charged. But there were some red flags. One witness said he found it odd that Muller parked his car several blocks away shortly before the blaze. A former employee, speaking decades later, said he believed Muller was capable of the act.

Muller left Montserrat shortly after the fire and years later was spotted in Montreal. It’s uncertain whether he collected an insurance payout.

THIEF IN THE NIGHT

For most victims of the fire, however, there was no insurance bailout. And the looting that transpired didn’t help.

John Wilson, who lived in Jubilee – about a quarter-mile south of the fire – recalls helping Franklyn Farier, Montserrat’s Chief Inspector of Health, salvage his belongings as the fire spread. Farier lived behind Hamsey Allen’s store near Chapel Street.

“He lived on the second floor,” Wilson said. “We helped him take out furniture and other things and handed them to people on the ground who we thought were helping us. When we got down everything was gone.”

Teresa Pond-Moses also recalled some of the brazen thievery.

“Some people who had to evacuate took their refrigerators up to Kitty Field,” she said, referring to an open area just east of Old Chapel Street. “People went there and stole things right from the fridge.”

The following day became a scavenger hunt as many went into burned-out shops searching for consolation prizes.

“I saw women going into Mrs. Nanton’s store and stuffing jewelry in their bosoms,” Teresa said. “At the same time they were saying what a shame it was that the store got burned.”

Reginald Osborne’s store, with soft drink distillery in the back, was destroyed by the fire. Osborne ran the business with his partner and future wife, Rebecca Galloway, better known as “Becca Gypsy.” Osborne was the owner but Becca was the face of the business. She was assertive and outspoken.

Osborne kept a safe in the store with paper money and coins. A number of folks traversed the store during and after the fire, including firemen battling the blaze and normal citizens rummaging through remnants the following day. Most of the money disappeared. Some of the bills, which had slight burn marks, began circulating around town. It became a running joke to the point that when anyone spotted burnt money they called it “Marse Reggie Money.”

The irrepressible Becca didn’t find it funny, though. She mostly blamed the first responders and would confront them in public. “Ayu tief Marse Reggie money!” she would declare.

CHANGING LANDSCAPE

The George Street Fire was not lethal but it was life-changing. For one it transformed the “Sweet Drink” industry in Montserrat. The two main distillers of aerated (carbonated) drinks – Hamsey Allen and Reginald Osborne – saw their shops shuttered for good. Traders, a regional company, eventually cornered the local soft-drink market.

Some businesses rebuilt, others relocated. Lindy Eid’s New York Store later became Suntex Bakery (Eid already had a second “New York Store” on Strand Street). Hamsey Allen’s Shop became Marse Bob’s Shop. Dr. Desmond Wooding and shopkeeper Charles Jones moved west near Parliament Street. The Defense Force later moved its headquarters to Houston Street. Hulda Rogers’ building welcomed a new tenant: Daniel’s Pharmacy. Empire Shop, owned by Ernest and Edith Herman, moved to the first floor of Mrs. Harper’s building, replacing Daisy Nanton’s Advance Dress Shop.

During a 2022 interview Mrs. Nanton said she regrettably allowed her insurance to lapse and was distressed when her shop was destroyed. However, one of her specialties was hat-making, and when Queen Elizabeth visited Montserrat one month after the fire, many of the social events required women to wear hats. Mrs. Nanton said she made enough money selling hats to open a new shop, this time on Parliament Street across from Royal Bank of Canada.

LESSONS LEARNED

Sadly, sometimes it takes tragedies to spur change. Years later, Montserrat upgraded its fire-rescue apparatus and created a Fire Department with trained responders. Also, buildings that were made of stone on the first floor and wood on top were rebuilt to feature mostly concrete.

Jemmotte, whose home and place of employment were destroyed by the fire, said there were still some positives.

“It was another challenge for me. It helped me to mature. It makes you understand that things happen for a reason.”

John Wilson, who would open his own business on Parliament Street in 1976, said: “The fire really exposed how unprepared we were. It was a very strange thing that happened in our country.”

On January 6, 1969 – three years to the day of the fire – another strange episode occurred. Paul Proudfoot, the Royal Bank of Canada branch manager who was treasurer for the Fire Relief Fund in 1966, was found dead in his car in Old Towne. It was a suspected suicide. It was shocking, bizarre and cruelly ironic.

The vehicle had been set on fire.

Click here to read Part 1: Fire in early 1966 destroys businesses and homes in Montserrat’s capital.