Six families from the Western and Central Division whose homes were either fully or partially destroyed by fire this year are the first to receive $5,000 each under the Emergency Assistance program.
Speaking during the launch of the Emergency Assistance for House Fire Victims Program, Prime Minister Voreqe Bainimarama said the program is for victims of house fire who do not have insurance and face financial difficulty in rebuilding their houses.
Bainimarama say losing a home to a fire is one of the most traumatic experiences for any family.
He said the National Fire Authority has attended to 23 house fires that resulted in losses of about $634,000 since the beginning of this year.
The Prime Minister said the heartbreaking cases are those in which the under privileged may survive but have financial difficulty in rebuilding their homes.
He said people should take personal responsibility for reducing the risk of house fires to end the loss of property and loss of life.
$1 million has been allocated for this program.
64-year-old Phalad Kumar a resident of Valelevu who lost his two bedroom house in a fire last month said he will now be able to rebuild his home.
47-year-old Waisake Vuikedra of Lautoka said he wants to build his own house as he is now staying with his neighbor after his two bedroom house was destroyed by a fire.
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