Kano Market Infernos

In less than two weeks, three major markets in Kano have witnessed fire incidents that destroyed goods worth hundreds of millions of naira, leaving traders and shop owners wailing, weeping and gnashing teeth.

It began on March 1, 2023 with an inferno, which razed the famous Kurmi Market. Following this was the March 8, 2023 fire disaster at the popular Abubakar Rimi Market, which was then followed by the latest fire at the Singer Market on March 13, 2023.

While the Kurmi Market fire that occurred in the morning of Wednesday March 1 destroyed no fewer than 80 shops and goods worth millions of naira, no fewer than 19 shops and a mosque were completely razed by the fire disaster that gutted Abubakar Rimi market.

Just when the state thought it had seen the last market infernos for now, traders were greeted by the Singer Market fire which destroyed property worth millions of naira.   Located along Ibrahim Taiwo Road in Kano metropolis, the Singer Market is the largest foodstuff market in the state.

Because of its cosmopolitan and commercial nature, Kano, as a centre of commerce, has continued to serve as the market for food crops from different parts of the north, especially the north central states of Niger, Kogi, Benue and Nasarawa which are the food baskets of the nation.

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It was these foodstuffs that were wasted by the Singer Market fire that began in the early hours of Monday, razing several shops in the market. Sadly, the fire was controlled only after it had blazed for about seven hours. One recurring trend in these fire incidents is the fact that they occurred in the early hours of the morning, at a time most traders were not at the shops.

Could it be that the fire disasters were caused by the fact that traders fail to observe simple rules like turning off electrical appliances when closing for the day? What is the state of the wiring connections in these markets?

Like most Nigerians, we are wont to ask what firefighting measures had been put in place in all these markets and other public places in the state. There is no contesting the fact that while prompt response from the fire service is important, such cannot take the place of preventive measures.

As a newspaper, we sympathise with traders and all those who have incurred losses in these market infernos and urge the state government to, without any delay, unravel the cause(s) of these disasters and, importantly, put in place measures to forestall future occurrences.

Although the state fire service has yet to explain the causes of these infernos, it is heartening to note that the Governor Umar Ganduje-led state government has constituted a committee to unravel this mystery.

The Ganduje’s committee, according to a statement by the state commissioner for information and internal affairs, Muhammad Garba, is saddled with the responsibility to determine the immediate causes of the inferno and ways of avoiding future occurrences.

Conscious of the need to provide succour to the victims, Garba listed the committee’s mandate to include assessing the damage and making recommendations on how the government can offer support and assistance to the affected traders.

Kano State government must do all it takes to provide the needed assistance to victims of these incidents and on time, too, as any delay will be counter-productive.

As a newspaper, we urge traders and shop owners, especially those yet to embrace insurance, must see these frequent fire incidents as an incentive to insure their property and, by so doing, get financial assistance for losses incurred.

Now more than ever before, these recurring incidents of fire disasters underscore the need for stakeholders – the government, traders and officials of market associations – to devise means of ensuring enhanced disaster prevention and management strategies.

Also, there is an overarching need to strengthen the fire service in view of the increasing incidences of fire disaster. Only recently, the Federal Fire Service said property valued at more than N23.3bn was lost to fire outbreaks in the country between October and December 2022. This is a huge loss in just four months. A statistical report from the Fire Service showed that 649 fire outbreaks were recorded within the period, with properties valued at N145.4bn saved, 28 lives lost and 40 others rescued.

The devastation that fire outbreaks cause are too enormous for the issue to be treated with any hint of unseriousness. Such fires can be avoided if necessary measures are taken by all concerned.