find that part of his home and all his personal belongings had burned in a fire.

46-year old Mr. Cleo Hodgson, who is partially paralysed from a stroke eight years ago, found that his bedroom on the second floor had been gutted.

Now, his sister, Mrs. Wander Hodgson, is appealing for help.

"My brother had no insurance. He lost his bed, and all his clothes. Now he only has the clothes he stands up in. He'd just saved up to buy a TV and that's gone too.'' Mrs. Hodgson, who said that her brother, who inherited the house from his father, is unable to work, receives no social assistance and relies on $500 monthly rent from a tenant in the other half of the house for his sole income.

"I am very grateful to the neighbours who raised the alarm and managed to put out the worst of the fire with a hose. I don't know the names of the Good Samaritans, but I would sure like to thank them.'' Fire officials, who responded to the alarm at 10.41 a.m. estimated damage between $8,000 and $10,000.

Mrs. Hodgson said that her brother insisted on staying in the living room, on the ground floor of his home, last night.

"Since his stroke, he can't speak too clearly, so I don't really know how he feels about all this. I think it was painful for him to see that all his things had gone.'' She said fire officials were afraid the kitchen ceiling may fall down as a result of the fire.

"I am hoping that someone will come forward and help us clear up this mess.

It's been a difficult time for my family, as I have to take care of our mother who's 82, and has Alzheimer's disease, I've also had a slight stroke and my son just had an operation on his leg.''