A late-night fire incident on Saturday has destroyed 10 shops and goods worth millions of naira at the popular Oba Lipede Market, Kuto, Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.
It was gathered that the fire started at about 10.15 pm on Saturday.
The fire was said to have been caused by the explosion of a generator being powered by gas and owned by a businessman in the market.
The Director of Ogun State Fire Service, Engr Fatai Adefala, confirmed this to our correspondent on Sunday.
Adefala said that the state fire service was contacted at about 10.15pm and its men raced to the market to salvage the situation.
He said, “There was a fire incident at the market on Saturday night. We were contacted at about 22:15 and we quickly raced down to bring the situation under control. Ten shops were affected and the fire affected some goods inside these shops.
“The incident was due to the explosion of a generator being used in the area and which is being powered by gas. A businessman who is into extracting the palm kernel shaft is said to be the owner of the generator and there was said to have been a power surge when this fire broke out.
“No life was lost, only one person sustained minor injury and he has been taken to hospital for medical treatment.”
Some of the goods destroyed by the fire were food stuff like rice, beans, household utensils like pots among other valuables
A couple, Basiru and Tolani Moses, who had their two shops razed by the fire told newsmen that the fire burnt the N500,000 cash kept in one of the shops while goods worth over N1.5m were equally destroyed.
Basiru said the cash was kept in the shop for onward deposit in the bank on Monday.
Our correspondent gathered that the Commissioner for Special Duties, Funmi Efuwape, the Director of the State Emergency Management Agency, Wale Sonde; Director of State Fire Service, Fatai Adefala, the Chairman of Abeokuta South Local Government, Omolaja Majekodunmi were among the early callers on Sunday morning to assess the level of damage caused by the fire incident
Speaking with newsmen, Efuwape said, “The fire outbreak was just because of these shanties erected outside the main market building. Now that they (traders) have seen it for themselves, I am sure when the government comes in and tells them that all these shanties must go, they will definitely agree with us that they have to go.
“About 10 shops were affected outside and five inside. The five would not have been affected if the ones outside were not there. The fire started from the illegal structures outside and erupted to the main building.”
Asked if demolition will take place, she responded, “Definitely. Even yesterday (Saturday) when the fire was burning, the fire tenders could not get in because of lack of space. We need to have enough space so that in future vehicles can move in and out easily.”
The commissioner disclosed that the main market building will undergo an integrity test to ascertain its safety, while the government will roll out measures to renovate the market.
The Director of SEMA, Mr Wale Sonde, during the visit hinted that the NEMA officials will on Monday visit the market to assess damages and decide on how to assist the victims.
Sonde noted that “physical, economic and psychological damages” have been recorded in the incident.
The market leader, Mrs Tejumade Bakre, has equally lamented that there was looting shortly after the incident, but the security agents later came to the rescue and chased the miscreants away.
Credit: Punch
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