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• Lament recurring fires, accuse authorities of failing to act on previous promises
From Juliana Taiwo-Obalonye, Abuja
Traders at the Kugbo Furniture Market in Abuja have lost goods valued at over ₦500 million following a fire outbreak that destroyed several shops on Friday morning.
The fire, which started before most traders arrived to open their shops, affected a section of the market occupied by dealers in wood, foam, local and imported boards, and furniture accessories.
Chairman of the Kugbo Wood Machinist Association, Godswill Ndukwe, who confirmed the incident, said the cause of the fire was yet to be established.
He said goods worth over ₦500 million were destroyed in the inferno, adding that the incident was one of several fire outbreaks recorded at the market.
“The fire outbreak this morning is terrible. The fire started when most of the shops were not opened.
“The affected section houses foams, woods, local and foreign boards and furniture accessories.
“We are yet to know the cause of the fire, but goods worth five hundred million were burnt,” he said.
Ndukwe appealed to the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC) and the Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) to take measures to prevent further fire outbreaks, lamenting that previous appeals had not yielded the expected results.
“We are appealing to AMAC and the FCT Administration to do something. We have had several of these incidents, and officials will come and make promises, but nothing happens afterwards. Please, let the government help us,” he said.
One of the affected traders, Okechukwu Chilke, who deals in different types of boards, declined to comment as he watched over the remains of his shop.
As at press time, no official reactions to the incident have been received from the FCT Fire Service and other relevant government agencies.
