FYZABAD police are searching for a man who they believe set two wooden structures on fire, leaving a 64-year-old man and his three adult nephews homeless.

Homeless are Premchan Harripersad and nephews Rakesh Jaikaran, Andy Hosein and Anil Hosein.

No one was at home on Delhi Road. The houses were on the same compound.

The suspect had moved into the area recently, Newsday was told.

Residents saw flames at around 6.30 pm on Saturday, and within minutes, the structures were burnt to the ground.

A resident recalled, “They went nearby by the supermarket. The uncle lived in the front house with one of his nephews. Their living condition was not good. They grew up very poor, so they do not have any money to rebuild on their own. Things are very hard for them. They work here and there but jobs are hard to find.”

[caption id="attachment_999017" align="alignnone" width="1024"] The ruins of the structures that were destroyed by fire in Fyzabad on Saturday. -[/caption]

Owing to the closeness of the Solomon Hochoy Highway extension, the family, like so many others, was told to relocate with the promise of compensation.

They relocated to a “makeshift house,” hoping to use the compensation money to help build a solid home.

The resident, who asked that his name not be used, added that the family was never compensated and returned to the wooden houses which were burnt.

Four days earlier, a fire at Colley Street, also in Fyzabad, left one man homeless. That fire spread across the street and destroyed his neighbour’s car, which was parked on the roadside.