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From Jude Chinedu, Enugu
Office of the Independent National Electoral Commission(INEC) in Udenu Local Government Area of Enugu State has been gutted by fire.
The inferno which was said to have started close to midnight destroyed an unverified number of equipment and material in the building.
Preliminary investigation by the Police attributed the incidence to power surge due to sudden power to the building.
According to the Police spokesman in Enugu, Mr Daniel Ndukwe, the state Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Aliyu, has ordered the cordoning off of the scene for thorough investigation to further ascertain the actual cause of the fire outbreak and damages incurred.
However, according an eyewitness(name withheld), who questioned the location of the state Fire Service office in the local government, the situation would have been brought under control had the fire fighters arrived on time.
“It was terrible. We were afraid that it will spill into the next building which is housing the Federal Road Safety Corps. We thank God it was only the INEC office that was burnt.
“I don’t know the cause but what I know is that if men of the State Fire Service had arrived on time, the building would have been saved. How can they site the Fire Service office in Orba and not Obollo-Afor, the local government headquarters. This is where you have majority of sensitive offices.
“It’s government decision and most times we can’t question it, but this is the result of such decisions. We see it here every time there is a fire incidence. Before they’ll come from Orba, the damage would have been done.
