Millions Lost As Fire Destroys 15 Shops In Ogun Market (Pix)

A fire outbreak has razed 15 shops, destroyed goods worth millions of naira, and left one person injured at the Oba Lipede Market in Kuto, Abeokuta, Ogun State.

The inferno reportedly began around 10:15 pm on Saturday in one of the makeshift shops outside the market.

According to an eyewitness, the fire was caused by a power surge in a palm kernel shop that was using gas.

Some of the goods destroyed in the fire included rice, provisions, bananas, pots, and other items.

A couple, Basiru and Tolani Moses, had their shops, located next to each other in the market, completely destroyed by the fire.

Basiru stated that N500,000 in cash was lost in the incident, along with goods worth N1.5 million. He explained that the cash was meant to be deposited in the bank on Monday.

The market leader, Mrs. Tejumade Bakre, lamented that there was looting shortly after the fire, but security agents later arrived to control the situation.

Several officials, including the Commissioner for Special Duties Funmi Efuwape, the Director of the State Emergency Management Agency (OGSEMA) Wale Sonde, the Director of the State Fire Service Fatai Adefala, and the Chairman of Abeokuta South Local Government Omolaja Majekodunmi, visited the market on Sunday morning to assess the damage.

Speaking to 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, definitely they will agree with us that they have to go.”

Efuwape noted that ten shops outside and five inside the market were affected. He emphasized that the five shops inside would not have been affected if the shanties outside had not been there. “The fire started from the illegal structures outside and erupted to the main building,” he added.

Efuwape disclosed that the main market building will undergo an integrity test to ensure its safety, and the government will implement measures to renovate the market.

The Fire Service chief, Adefala, explained, “We were called around 10:15 pm and our men got here on time, but the problem was that we could not access the market on time, so we had to go through the back to trace where it started from.”

He confirmed that a power surge in a palm kernel shop, which was using gas for recycling, triggered the fire. “Those are the chalets outside the main Lipede market,” Adefala said.

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