Veteran journalist rendered homeless in Dar

 Veteran journalist Simeon Ileta who retired recently now lives in difficulty, after his house was burnt down by fire that was caused by electrical fault at his Tegeta Wazo residence in Dar es Salaam. For about a week now, he sleeps outside where there is neither blanket nor shelter to provide him with cover. “The fire outbreak razed down everything including valuables that were inside my house," lleta said in an interview with journalists who went to comfort him at the weekend. The incident occurred on last Wednesday midnight when Ileta and his wife and his family were asleep. Efforts by neighbours and residents in the area to try to put off the fire failed to bear fruits as it had already spread in the entire house and scorched its walls. “We tried to call the firefighting office, but to no avail," said Ileta, who added: "later we decided to ask for help from Wazo Hill cement factory firefighters, who by the time they arrived at the scene the fire had already scorched everything.” “To some extent, however, the Combat Fire from the Cement factory helped to prevent the fires to spread out to the neighbouring houses," he added. Explaining further, Ileta said that the incident occurred at midnight when he, his wife and two children were asleep. "On the material day there was a funeral in the neighbourhood and I was late to return home from the funeral. A few minutes while resting on my bedroom, I heard my neighbours shouting fire, fire, after a roar and a huge explosion. I rushed to find out as I was asking where is my wife? Where is my wife? he said. “I wanted to go inside so as to save her, but they grabbed me and prevented me from returning inside,” he said. “I latter came to realize that my wife was safe and resting somewhere at a corner of our compound,” he said. Ileta, now retired is a veteran journalist, who began his career at the government daily English paper, The Daily News in 1973, before he joined the Tanzania news Agency (Shihata) and later the Foreign Service in Zambia. On his return home, he became editor of several newspapers, including This Day and Kulikoni, and latter The Guardian on Sunday.