The fire...

So at the end of March or early April we had the biggest event of my stay in town!


I was sitting at my guesthouse having a mango shake (my standard drink of choice at the Sovannkiri Restaurant - best mango shakes in Sen Monorom!) and using the internet. Suddenly I hear the sound of popping like small firecrackers. I think nothing of it and continue using the internet.


After 5 minutes Calem, the owner of the Sovannkiri, says the guesthouse diagonally across the street is on fire. The popping sound was of bricks exploding under the intense heat. I look over and see smoke rising from the front of the building. This guesthouse is not being used currently - it is being remodeled. So I quickly pack up my computer and run up to my room to put it away and head over to see the excitement.


When I arrive the upper left room is clearly where the fire is located. From my angle I can't see the fire but can clearly see the reflection of the flames on the wall facing me. A few men are running around trying to pass a fire extinguisher to each other while balancing on the roof trying to subdue the flames. The property owner next door is frantically running around with a small hose trying to help put it out but the water doesn't even reach half way up to the fire. A huge crowd - maybe 400 people - has gathered and many are using their cell phones to record the excitement. This continues for about 20 minutes and the fire is slowly spreading. The problem is the frame of the building is wood so the fire can't be put out with a little hand held extinguisher.


Finally two large tanker trucks pull up. These things look like 1950's water trucks and they have a little turret that a fireman sits on and points a high pressure hose at the fire. The firemen yell for everyone to get off the roof and then he lets loose with the water cannon. The second water truck just sits there watching. I ask another westerner I know, Harry, why it is waiting. He informs me that if/when the first truck runs out of water it will head down to the lake to get a refill and the second truck will then go into service. If they both use their water supply and then have to leave the whole town could end up on fire! He says it can take 20 - 40 minutes to refill the tanker trucks.


So we watch the water cannon blast the siding and some tiles off of the building. This cannon is powerful and could inflict some serious property/personal damage if misused. A few firemen climb on the roof and use an ax to smash some ventilation holes. This takes place over about 15 minutes and the crowd continues to watch and video the entire thing like it's a fireworks show. Finally after about 30 minutes the police arrive and tell people they have to leave the scene. People slowly disperse. Within an hour the entire street is empty of emergency personnel.


The building looks like a wreck on the side the fire was located. In the next two months I am there they continue to remodel and the room the fire started in has yet to be repaired before I depart. My friend Heng told me the local television station has some video clips of the fire on their nightly newscast. Biggest event in SM in my time there...