Fire Sparked By Gas Cylinder Guts Shops, Vehicles, Classrooms In Kano

A fire outbreak triggered by gas cylinders being offloaded from a Peugeot J5 vehicle razed shops, vehicles, and several classrooms in the Rijiyar Zaki area of Kano on Sunday.

Kano State Fire Service disclosed this on Monday, April 21, 2025, through a statement signed by the agency’s Public Relations Officer, ACFO Saminu Abdullahi.

The incident occurred around 1:53 p.m. on April 20, when the fire service received a distress call from a resident, Hamza Muhammad who alerted of the fire at Kwanar Yan Kifi, Rijiyar Zaki.

Firefighters from the agency’s headquarters, Rijiyar Zaki, and Bompai stations were immediately deployed to the scene to curb the inferno.

On arrival, the team discovered that the fire had engulfed the ground-floor of the building measuring approximately 100 by 50 feet, which housed three shops at the front and served as a multipurpose commercial space.

One of the shops, used by a gas vendor, was the suspected source of the fire, which reportedly began the gas cylinders were being offloaded from a vehicle with unidentified registration number.

The fire quickly spread, consuming two parked vehicles and damaging a third. It also extended to the nearby Young Marshall Science Academy, destroying seven classrooms, an office, and two toilets within the school premises.

“In total, three shops, two vehicles, and seven classrooms were well alight while one vehicle was slightly affected,” the statement said.

“With God’s intervention and the efforts of our men, the fire was successfully contained, preventing further damage to other shops, classrooms, and one vehicle.”