Fire, on Tuesday night, razed down a section of the popular Eke Market in Afikpo Town, Ebonyi state. The fire destroyed shops and goods worth millions of naira, although no life was lost. Traders in the market made frantic efforts to save their goods, without success.The cause of the fire was yet to be found out.
The Ebonyi State Fire Service in Afikpo could not mobilise to fight the fire because of lack of equipment, Easterner learnt. The youths in the Area came to the rescue and prevented the fire from escalatinThe Chairman of Afikpo North Local Government Area, Oby Enyim, visited the scene of the incident about 6:35 a.m. on Wednesday to find out the level of damage and to sympathise with the victims. The chairperson described the incident as pathetic. She promised that the local council would take measures to prevent a recurrence.
“Don’t lose hope or give up because of this. You shall all overcome this setback,” she said to the victims.
Ms Enyim was taken round the scene of the fire disaster by the Chairman of Afikpo Market Traders Association, Johnson Oka. Mr Oka said many of the traders lost “everything” in the inferno. He called on government agencies in charge of disaster management to come to the aid of the victim. A statement by the council quoted Ms Enyim as promising to unravel the cause of the fire. She advised the traders to always turn off their electrical appliances when leaving their shops. The member representing Afikpo North East Constituency in Ebonyi House of Assembly, Lilia n Eziulo, has sympathised with victims of the fire incident.
The lawmaker, in a statement on Wednesday, commended the youths who helped to put out the fire.
“With a sincere heart, I pray you shall recover all you have lost,” she said.
