At least 30 shops have been razed down at the Kumasi Central Market in the Ashanti Region following a devastating blaze Sunday night.
Firefighters in the Ashanti Region had a tough time to bring the fire under control at the market, according to eyewitnesses.
Officials said the fire started just before 9pm at an enclave mainly occupied by cobblers. Items including finished shoes, petroleum and wooden products running into millions of Ghana Cedis were destroyed.
The development comes amid concerns of slow pace of work on the Kumasi Central Market Redevelopment Project. Many believe the facility when completed will prevent such disasters going forward.
Fire outbreaks on the rise
Figures from the Ghana National Fire Service indicate that domestic fire outbreaks are on the rise in Ghana.
Statistics of fire outbreaks in 2019 and 2020 projected that there were 1,822 and 1,910 fires from January to October in both years, respectively.
The domestic fire incidents from January to October, represented 39.63% and 35.67% of total fire outbreaks, respectively in both years.
This was followed by bush fires recording 608 in 2019 and 1,220 in 2020 in the same time periods. There was an increase of fire outbreaks from January to October 2019 from 4,623 to 5,355 for the same period in 2020.
Jonathan Ofori
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