A fire at a Children’s Authority reception centre in San Fernando forced the evacuation of six wards and staff on July 20.

A security officer attached to the facility observed smoke coming from the second floor of the building around 3.30 pm and alerted four workers. The children were gathered and evacuated along with all members of staff. The Mon Repos Fire Station responded and quickly extinguished the blaze.

Assistant Chief Fire Officer for the Southern Division, Mukharji Rampersad, told Newsday that there were no injuries reported and the damage to the building was limited to a value of $15,000. He said a cause of the fire had not yet been determined, but investigations are ongoing.