Fire fighters trying to quench the blaze
Several items, including a truck, were burnt into ashes following a fire outbreak which swept through some shops in the Kumasi Central Market yesterday afternoon.
Quantities of mattresses loaded onto a truck, reportedly got in contact with dangling electric wires, which started the blaze around 1:30 pm, causing panic among the people.
Within some few minutes, the blaze had reportedly consumed the truck and the mattresses after which it torched a building nearby.
The incident occurred some few blocks away from the main entrance of the market, which has for years proven to be a fire-prone area.
Yesterday’s fire gutted about four shops situated on the ground floor of a storey building.
The shops were filled with inflammable wares such as leather, which made the fire to travel fast, eye witnesses told this paper.
The blaze, according to reports, also caused damage to a certain rural bank, which is situated on the first floor of the said storey building.
The firefighters trying to put out the flamess
Fire Fighters
Luckily, fire fighters rushed to the scene on time after receiving a distress call, and they managed to quench the fire before it could cause more havoc.
Injuries
Fortunately, no deaths were recorded; the driver, who allegedly caused the mishap, reportedly vanished into thin air immediately the fire started.
About three people, who tried to salvage some of their items, sustained minor injuries and they were rushed to the hospital for treatment.
Minister, Mayor Visit
The Ashanti Regional Minister, Simon Osei Mensah and Osei Assibey Antwi, the Kumasi mayor, rushed to the scene to ascertain the cause of the fire.
The minister, without mincing words, blamed the driver, whose truck was overloaded with mattresses, for causing the preventable incident.
He said fire fighters also faced some difficulties in getting access to the disaster scene because traders had totally taken over the busy road.
Mr. Osei Mensah lauded the fire fighters for their yeoman’s job which helped to forestall fatalities, warning that the traders would be ejected from the road.
He also urged policemen in the city to impound overloaded vehicles so as to prevent such tragedies in future.
Osei Assibey Antwi, the mayor, urged the affected shop owners to take heart, assuring that the rest of the city is with them in these trying moments.
FROM I.F. Joe Awuah Jnr., Kumasi