Atleast 15 shops were razed by fire in the inferno that ravaged a complex of shops along Fatai Irawo, Ajao Estate, Isolo Local Council Development Area (LCDA) in Lagos State on Friday as shop owners recount their losses.
The fire, which was said to have broken out in the area by electricity glitch, ravaged almost all shops in the complex at 34, Fatai Irawo Street, Ajao Estate, destroying goods and properties worth millions of naira, turning the complex to scavengers’ site.
The Manager of Wait and Carry Express Cargo, Mr. Emeka John, who owns two warehouses in the complex, expressed his shocking belief at the extent at which the fire consumed almost all shipped goods in one of his warehouses, stating that only little items could be salvaged.
Speaking with newsmen, he said: “Everything inside here (one of the warehouses) got burnt. We could only recover little items. Goods worth Millions of naira as well as 200 Dollar cash and about N800,000 thousand in the safe got burnt in the shop.”
While Speaking on the cause of the fire, John told newsmen “I don’t really know what caused the fire. I just got a call around past 2 that the shop was burning. I thought it is not something as much as this not knowing it has burnt down already.”
Meanwhile, eye witness account disclosed the likely cause of the inferno to be electric surge while blaming the fire service for not being at the spot on time, adding that more goods would have been saved if the Police had not denied them entrance till the shop owners came.
Meanwhile, efforts to reach fire service to make press statement proved abortive as at press time.