Goods Worth Millions Destroyed In Ebonyi Mystery Inferno

Goods worth millions of naira has been burnt to ashes following a mystery midnight fire outbreak that razed down three shops located at Orifete Street, Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital.

The shops, a fabrics and tailoring factory with goods worth millions of naira purchased for the Christmas sales as well as clothing materials and already made clothes belonging to white wedding and traditional marriage celebrants among others.

One of the victims, Mrs Nneoma Otozi lamented that the source of the fire incident could not be traced adding that in the middle of the night, some residents of the area saw smoke coming out from the shops and alerted other neighbours who called on the fire service men who helped to control the fire from extending to other buildings.

Mrs Otozi, a hair stylist said the goods, money and properties destroyed in her shop is worth over five million naira and expressed shock over the incident.

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She described her condition as hopeless, as she borrowed money to buy hair attachments and other goods for sale in the Christmas season.

She pleaded with government at all levels, NGOs and individuals to help her start life again. The victim stressed that the over ten workers under her tutelage are now jobless as a result of the incident.

An eyewitness, Mr Gibson Ugwu said that another victim who has about twenty five workers in her shop lost five industrial sewing machines, three manual sewing machines, clothing materials for sale, weave-on, hair driers and other properties worth millions of naira.

He appealed to government and good spirited individuals to come to their assistance, stressing that one of the victims almost killed herself if not for the intervention of neighbours.

Meanwhile, a human rights activist and social commentator Comrade Ibiam Agwu has described as unfortunate the continued withholding of the November and December salaries of the staff of ministry of power and energy by the state government.

Agwu urged the state governor, Chief David Umahi to without delay release the salaries of the staff of the ministry as their families and defendants are going through economic hardship and starvation.

“Firemen in the state are under the Ministry of Power and Energy, what concerns them with the vandalism of street light cables that the governor should withhold their salaries for two months now? How does he expect them to be commitment in the discharge of their duty in this harmattan season that fire outbreak is being witnessed in the state weekly?”