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A fire has razed nine shops at the Nigerian Railway shopping complex in Aleshinloye Market, Ibadan South-West Local Government Area, Oyo State.
The fire, which started at about 5 am on Saturday, destroyed goods, household items and other property worth millions of naira.
One of the affected traders, Busari Olayemi, said residents around Quarters 4 alerted shop owners to the fire at about 6 am.
“The fire destroyed products worth about N21 million, including window blinds, curtain fabrics, industrial sewing machines and other equipment,” he said.
Another affected trader said, “Our customers’ fabrics were burnt; you can see them over there. Our industrial sewing machines and tools were burnt right there.”
The Special Adviser to Governor Seyi Makinde on Fire Reform and Chairman of the Oyo State Fire Services Agency, Moroof Akinwande, confirmed the incident in a statement issued on Saturday.
“The fire incident was reported at exactly 05:58 am through a telephone call from Taofeek, who alerted the agency to a fire outbreak at shops within the complex,” the statement read.
According to Akinwande, firefighters led by Chief Fire Superintendent Adesina quickly mobilised to the scene and found nine locked shops engulfed in flames.
“The crew immediately commenced firefighting operations and called for reinforcement. A second fire truck with a 10,000-litre water capacity was subsequently deployed to the scene,” he said.
He added that the combined efforts of the crews brought the fire under control and prevented it from spreading to adjoining shops and properties.
“No casualty was recorded,” Akinwande said.
He said preliminary investigations suggested that an electrical surge may have triggered the fire, igniting combustible materials inside the affected shops.
Akinwande urged residents to remain vigilant and observe fire safety precautions.
