Over Five Million Lost As Fires Razes Down 20 Shops In Benue

Five million naira, cash and 120 shops were on Thursday night destroyed by fire that gutted Otukpo Local Government Main Market in Benue State.

It was gathered that the fire, which started about 6.30pm at the cosmetics and fish section of the market, lasted for over four hours.

The latest incident makes it the fifth time the market will be gutted by fire.

Eyewitnesses said the entire Otukpo town was thrown into confusion as traders who own shops in the market ran to the scene of the incident to safeguard their wares.

Even those whose goods were not torched carried them on their heads and vehicles to their homes to prevent them from being looted.

Confirming the incident, the Market Master, Chief Obogo Alapa, suspected that the coal pot stove and fuel container which were destroyed by the fire could have caused the disaster.

The Caretaker Chairman of the Local Government Area, Dr. Innocent Onuh, said the disaster was monumental and appealed to the state government to provide a fire service in the town to prevent recurrence.

The chairman also called for the restoration of water supply to the town as he said people had to rush to Otobi river where Otukpo Water Works is located to source for water before they could put out the fire.

Efforts to get the response of the Police Command’s spokesperson, Austin Ezeanyi, failed as he did not pick several calls and SMS put to his mobile telephone as of the time of filling this report.

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