40 Shops, Vehicles Destroyed In Sokoto Mechanic Village Fire

About 40 shops and vehicles were destroyed yesterday in a fire outbreak at the mechanic village in Sokoto.

The mechanic village is called ‘Buzaye Garage’, where people from the Niger Republic are patronising.

Residents say the fire started at approximately 10:00 a.m. They suspect an electrical fault triggered the fire.

Men of the Federal Fire Service, the Sokoto State Fire Service, and local community members were unable to contain the fire.

“We lost about 40 shops despite the efforts of firefighters and members of the village,” a mechanic said.

The fire was basically in the area where we always repair Mercedes-Benz vehicles,” he said.

The chairman of the Nigerian Automobile Technicians Association (NATA), Buzaye Unit, Engr. Abdulkadir Muhammad confirmed the incident.

“It is too early to ascertain the exact number of shops and vehicles destroyed because the fire is still burning,” he said.

“We can only determine the extent of the damage after the fire has been completely quenched.”

Engr. Muhammad attributed the outbreak to an electrical fault, explaining that the mechanic village houses numerous inflammable materials and gas cylinders used for welding, which may have worsened the situation.

He appealed to the Sokoto State Government to assist affected members, recalling that the last time the association received government support after a similar incident was over a decade ago, during the administration of former governor Aliyu Wamakko.