Monica Pacheco, who lost her husband and home in Hurricane Fabian, is now considering suing her former employer.

And furniture store Rooms For You is also facing legal action from irate customers, who put down deposits for furniture which they fear will now never arrive.

Mrs. Pacheco began work at the Mill Creek store in July but was never informed by company bosses that the store was shut.

The store closed on Monday, September 8, just three days after her husband Manuel was among four people killed when they were washed off the Causeway at the height of Fabian. As that tragedy unfolded, Mrs. Pacheco's home suffered severe damage - forcing her to move out.

She is yet to receive any official notice that the company is shut and claims they owe her thousands of dollars in unpaid wages.

“I'm very disappointed in them,” said Mrs. Pacheco, who has a one-year-old child.

“You would have thought they would have bothered to get in touch and let me know what was happening, but they have made no effort to do so. This has been a tough time for me and having this on top of everything else isn't helping me. I really don't know what to do. If they knew the company wasn't doing well, they should never have taken me on.”

Mrs. Pacheco is not the only one to have been left out of pocket by the sudden closure of the upmarket furniture store.

It is understood that a network of customers, who have all lost deposits on furniture they have ordered, are getting together to consider what legal redress they have against the company's owners.

One, who asked not to be named, told The Royal Gazette she is considering calling in the Police if it can be proved that the company took her deposit without any intention of ordering the expensive furniture from overseas.

She added that she had spoken with a staff member who said that no orders had been placed since July and that other angry clients were looking for their goods or money. And another former employee, who also did not want to be named, is furious after being left out of pocket after working for the company since the shop closed.

She told The Royal Gazette she was asked to stay on and help at the store after its closure, but her promised weekly pay cheques have all bounced. Although she has received some remuneration from a relative of one of the owners, she is still more than $6,000 out of pocket.

“Enough is enough,” she said. “I realised now I am not going to get paid. I have been used enough. Something needs to be done. There are a lot of upset people out there because of this. This Island is too small for people to be able to go around doing this.”

One of the owners of Rooms For You, Robert Dwinnell, told The Royal Gazette: “The company has gone into voluntary liquidation. It is now in the hands of KPMG. I can say nothing else to you.”

He added the company did have assets. A visit by The Royal Gazette to the Rooms For You Mills Creek showroom found the property closed up. A neighbouring business proprietor confirmed that the furniture retailer had been shut for some time.

It is understood that Mr. Dwinnell has put up his house for sale at a value of more than $2 million.