From Sylvanus Viashima, Jalingo
An early-morning inferno on Saturday ravaged over 30 grocery shops at the Roadblock area of Jalingo, the Taraba State capital.
Our correspondent who visited the scene reports that the actual cause of the fire was not yet known, but some shop owners were blaming the black marketers using cooking gas within the premises, while some blamed an iron welder for the disaster.
Angry youths descended on men of the fire service who arrived at the scene about 30 minutes after being informed of the incident; the former immediately drove away from the scene while the fire raged.
Following the threat to the nearby fuel stations, as well as other businesses around the area, men of the Nigeria Police mobilised and tear gassed the youths so that they would disperse to allow the fire service personnel to return and tackle the fire and stop it from escalating.