Fire razes 31 shops, Mosque in Kaduna market

By Ese Awhotu with agency report

An early morning fire on Wednesday razed 31 shops, Mosque and destroyed foodstuff at the Kaduna Central Market, Bakin Dogo.
The fire was said to have started at about 2 a.m. in the palm oil sellers’ section of the market and spread to the local yam flour sellers’ section of the market and a Mosque at the palm oil sellers’ section.
Reports said the cause of the fire was not immediately known. However, the traders attributed it to an electrical fault.
The Cassava Grinders Union chairman at Bakin Dogo, Alfa Hussaini, who spoke to journalists at the market said about 31 shops were affected at the section
Hia words: “The fire I was told started around 2 a.m. when all of us were at home. By the time I came to the market, most of the shops were burnt completely. We lost millions of naira because most of the affected shops have two to four grinding machines.
“I think only God can help us because as you can see, most of the owners are women working hard to feed their family members. We are calling on the government to come to our aid,” he said.
An elderly man who identified himself as Baba, said he lost everything in his shop to the fire.
He said: “We need assistance because we lost everything in the shop. All my grinding machines have been destroyed,” he said.
He said men of Kaduna State Fire Service promptly responded to a distress call but it took them hours to stop the fire.