A midnight fire razed a shopping complex in the Ijoka area of Akure, Ondo State, with goods worth millions of naira destroyed, including staple foods stocked for the Christmas season.
The inferno, which started around 12:30 am on Saturday, damaged six shops within the complex.
Among the destroyed items were bags of rice, frozen chicken, turkey, among others.
One of the affected shop owners, Titilope Adebayo, who spoke with Peoples Gazette, revealed that the shops were powered by solar energy.
Adebayo, who expressed heartbreak over the incident, noted that many traders had taken loans to prepare for the festive season.
“It is sad. We have stocked the shops ahead of the week for the Christmas and New Year festive periods. Many of us collected loans from microfinance institutions to stock the shops, and now we are here counting our losses,” she lamented.
Another shop owner, Abiola Adedubaje, disclosed that her losses exceeded N4m. She appealed to Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa and well-meaning Nigerians for assistance.
“Yes, it’s true we had stocked the shop with bags of rice, frozen chicken, turkey, noodles, and other staple foods, but all have now gone. We’re appealing for help because our families can’t even stand this,” she said.
An official from the state fire service, who spoke anonymously to Peoples Gazette attributed the fire to “poor electrical installation.”
While reacting to the incident, the chairman of the Akure South Local Government, Bayo Alarapon, described the incident as unfortunate and assured the public of the council’s support for the affected traders.
“It is very unfortunate that this kind of incident is happening during these hard economic times. On our Q shall look for ways to assist the affected traders and will set up a panel to investigate the incident,” he stated.