Fire razes 50 shops in Gboko area of Benue

NO fewer than 50 lock up shops were on Monday razed at the Gboko Main Market in Gboko Local Government area of Benue State.

An eyewitness said that the fire started about 4 am of Monday which destroyed property worth several millions of naira.

The eyewitness who identified himself as  Christian Uchendu, a major businessman in Gboko Town said that the inferno started from one of the shops and may have been sparked as a result of an electrical fault.

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Uchendu said that no life was lost in the inferior but added that the fire razed all shops on Onisha Line, TBT Line, as well as the designated area for women who sell foodstuffs among others.

Another eyewitness who simply gave his name as Iorlam lamented that hours after the fire incidence, no fire truck was available to put it off. He said the development resulted in more shops also consumed in the inferior.

“Firefighters didn’t get to the area until after 8 am, that is four hours after the fire started. That gave room for more shops to be consumed by the inferno,” Iorlam stated

The council chairman, Becky Iorpin appealed to the affected traders to remain calm