Fire raze down popular spare part market in Benin
A popular spare part market in Benin has been razed down by a mid night fire destroying over 90 shops.
The market which is the biggest spare part market in Edo is located in Uwelu, Egor local government area.
The fire was said to have destroyed goods worthing millions as some of the affected traders were said to have just bought goods.
A victim of the fire incident, Festus Maxwell Osaeruoname, wondered how the fire spread rapidly when there was no power supply to the market.
According to him: ” We are yet to ascertain what actually happened that led to the fire. We could not remove anything from our shops.
“Many boys had just got freedom from their masters to open their shops. They are yet to repay the loans they took from various banks.”
Chairman of Spare parts dealers Association , Mr. Ibie Osaretin Augustine, said the fire incident has compounded the low patronage they are witnessing due to bad roads that lead to the market.
Augustine said the four security guard hired by the traders were being questioned by the police.
He said he received an anonymous call that the market was on fire and when he called the security personnel on ground, he was told that it was somebody burning something in a close by street.
His words: “When the security man told me somebody was burning something, I told him to check properly and he told me it was the line where my shop is located that was on fire.
“I called the Edo Fire Service but they did not come. The entire market would have been razed if fire men had not come from UNIBEN and the Nigerian Army.
