A devastating fire has destroyed over 300 shops at the Farm Center GSM market in Kano, leaving traders in shock and dealing with multi-billion naira losses.
The blaze, which began around 2:00 pm on Friday at the Dan Sileka building in Tarauni Local Government Area, raged for nearly seven hours before it was finally contained by the Kano State Fire Service.
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The fire swept through large sections of the market, mostly affecting areas where mobile phones and accessories were sold. Traders lost valuable goods, with individual shop losses estimated to range between N500 million and N1 billion. The overall value of goods destroyed is believed to be close to N100 billion, according to the market leadership.
Emergency responders from the fire service acted to prevent the flames from spreading to other parts of the market. Their efforts were widely praised by the market authorities and government officials.
Shortly after the incident, the Executive Chairman of Tarauni Local Government Area, Hon. Ahmed Ibrahim Muhammad Sekure, visited the scene to assess the level of destruction. He sympathized with affected traders and called on government agencies, humanitarian groups, and members of the public to offer support. He also highlighted the need for preventive measures to avert similar tragedies in the future.
An investigation is currently underway to determine the cause of the fire, which remains unknown at this time. Market leaders have also called for prayers and support to help rebuild and prevent future disasters.
