Traders and sympathizers at New Market in Aba, Abia State Line 49, Lagos zone, could not hold back tears as a mysterious fire gutted 14 shops and destroyed goods worth millions of naira.
Our correspondent, who visited the scene of the inferno on Friday, reports that the traders claimed that they couldn’t save a pin from the inferno, which started when they had all gone home after their day’s business on Thursday.
While the affected traders were seen picking and packing out charred goods from their shops, others who could not hold back emotions were seen being consoled by sympathisers at the scene.
Some of the traders, who spoke anonymously, demanded that the security men on duty should be questioned. This is as some of them alleged that the inferno was the handiwork of disgruntled elements.
They wondered how the area that doesn’t have electricity supply over decades or have anyone using naked fire got burnt over the night. They also queried the inability of the security men on duty in the area to raised the alarm when they spotted an unusual fire or smoke in a place that doesn’t sell any inflammable material.
One of the traders, Mr. Ifeanyi Ogbonna, who summoned courage to speak to our reporter at the scene, said that he lost about N2.5m, while a neighbour who had a provision shop said he lost goods worth about N8m.
According to him, men of the Abia State Fire Service came to attend to the fire, but left when they ran out of water.
He said that the fire was later quenched by sympathisers who used water from a nearby borehole operator to prevent the fire from engulfing other shops in the zone.
He appealed to the governor of the state, Dr. Okezie Ikpeazu, and other well-meaning Nigerians to come to their aid as they cannot bear the pain and weight of the loss alone
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