On Saturday, a fire broke out at Oja Tuntun Market in Ile-Ife, Osun State, destroying at least 17 shops.
According to eyewitness accounts, the fire started around 12:30 a.m and quickly spread to other shops.
Residents were said to have contacted the fire service and other emergency services in the state, but by the time firefighters arrived, the fire had caused significant damage.
Akobi, a resident of the community, told THE WHISTLER: “We contacted the firefighters and also the civil defence in town. Fortunately, firefighters from Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife quickly arrived at the scene while other firefighters joined them in putting out the fire. But the fire destroyed about 20 shops before they eventually put it out.”
The spokesperson for the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Kehinde Adeleke, confirmed the incident, noting that the cause of the fire was still under investigation.
“The firefighters, the community people, the market women, and the market’s local guards battled to ensure the fire was extinguished,” Adeleke said.
The spokesperson for the Osun State Fire Service, Adekunle Ibrahim, explained that the fire department was alerted to the fire at around 12:30 AM on Saturday.
“Ile-Ife Zonal Fire station was informed about a fire incident at Olulere new market, Oja tuntun in Ile-Ife at about 00:30hrs early morning of Saturday,” Ibrahim said.
“The cause of the fire was unknown, but many speculations by sympathizers and onlookers put the cause of the fire on many factors among which a power surge. We met the fire but we put it out with a combined effort of the OAU fire unit.”
Fire Rages Through Osun Market, Destroys 17 Shops is first published on The Whistler Newspaper