- He disclosed that the fire was caused by an electrical spark on a power change-over installed in one of the shops.
A section of the popular Kaura Modern Market in Abuja has been destroyed in a fire that broke out in the market.
The market, which is located opposite the Prince and Princess market in the Kaura District, was gutted by fire around 11 pm on Friday.
About 40 shops, with items such as foodstuff, appliances and household items, were razed in the inferno.
Acting Director of the FCT Fire Service, Amiola Adebayo, confirmed the incident to newsmen.
He disclosed that the fire was caused by an electrical spark on a power change-over installed in one of the shops.
In a report he shared with newsmen on Saturday, he stated that the fire was further worsened by a generator kept inside the shop where the fire started.
The report further stated that the incident was reported at 11:11 pm and was eventually put out at 1:59 am by combined teams of the FCT and Federal Fire Service
The report reads as follows “Property involved; Open Market block that comprises 39 shops of foodstuffs. Items lost: foodstuffs, generators, refrigerators, fruits, umbrellas, electrical appliances, household items, and some parts of the roof.
“Cause of fire: Electrical spark on a power change-over installed in one of the shops. The fire was put under control by the combined teams of the FCT fire service and Federal fire. Fire under control at 1:59 am.”
The Director however did not state whether or not there had been any loss of lives or injuries to persons as a result of the incident.
On claims that the Fire Service arrived late at the scene of the incident, Adebayo explained that the network challenges from service providers made the service hard to reach, stating however that officers arrived at the scene between 10-12 minutes after getting the call.
“The only challenge we had was network. They couldn’t reach us on time. I was there myself. When they called, I had to mobilise the Games Village service and in about 10-12 minutes they were there. But you know to a person at the scene, one minute would have felt like a long time. And then the Asokoro unit joined about 15 minutes after”, he said