In the wee hours of today, fire engulfed many shops at Owode Market, Offa, Kwara State. Prior to the time the Federal Fire Service and the Kwara State Fire Service came to their rescue, five shops had been razed to the ground. According to an eyewitness account, “Officials are still taking stock, but I can tell you that at least five stores were impacted. Prior to the conclusion of the evaluation, it is not possible to determine the value of the damaged products and property. As we wait for the fire department to issue a statement, there are multiple assertions regarding the fire’s cause.”
Kwara State has had multiple fire outbreaks in less than twelve months. Eight months ago, there was news of a midnight fire in the town that destroyed property worth N6.5 million and a private building. Around 1:05 a.m., there was an accident at the Kowope property in the Olorunkuse area of Offa that damaged four shops and a two-bedroom apartment.
In December, two separate fires in the Tanke area of Ilorin, in the Ilorin South Local Government Area of Kwara State, destroyed fourteen shops.
At Zion Overcomer, across the street from Duro Suleiman’s house on University Road in Tanke, at least seven shops burned down. Around 1:30 a.m., a fire destroyed another seven shops in the Tanke Oke-Odo area on University Road.
In addition, Hassan Adekunle, the spokesperson of Kwara State Fire Service attributed the saving of a property worth of about N13.3 million to the timely intervention of the firefighters.
By Chidimma NWAFOR
