Geoffrey Anyanwu, Enugu
Quick response and intervention of both the State and Federal Fire Service yesterday evening saved the total burnt down of a departmental store, Eastern Shop along Chime Avenue, New Haven, Enugu.
The Departmental Store located at Mister Biggs bus stop caught fire about 4.15pm from the top floor of the one story building and immediately razed the roof but for the quick response of the Fire Service to the distress call the entire shop and the adjoining buildings housing a Pharmacy, other shops and offices would have been affected by the fire.
The incident caused heavy traffic along the popular Chime Avenue as vehicles were diverted through the streets.
Eye witnesses gave kudos to the fire fighters especially those from the Federal for coming with a more sophisticate fire tanker with which the fire at the roof was quenched.
The fire at the departmental store was according to one of the firemen from the state service, the fourth they had fought that yesterday.
According to him, “This is the fourth fire incident today, two happened in Abakpa, one at the Civil Service Commission and this one now. We have been very busy today, we just finished at the Civil Service Commission and were settling down to eat before we were called to this place.”
Asked why the frequency, he simply said “it is its time, you know this is harmatarn.”
An eye-witness who dose petty trading around the place, while narrating what happened said, “This is my first time of seeing how fire burns, we were here, in fact I was attending to a customer who just shouted see smoke, this house is burning. As I jumped up behold the hole place was on fire and we started shouting and the people in the shop started running out and people called fire service people.
But this state people came their truck could not pump water to the top roof where the fire was burning, they were only pushing water below until the federal people came and were able to pump water on top the roof to quench the fire.”
At the time of sending the report the cause of the fire has not been made known.