Fire destroys shops at Kasoa new market

• Posted on August 26, 2024August 26, 2024
• by Nana Kwesi Coomson
• Comment

Property worth thousands of Ghana cedis were destroyed on Sunday when fire gutted several shops at the Kasoa New Market.

The incident happened barely 24hours after another disaster involving a building collapse claimed three lives and injured dozens.

Sunday was not a regular trading day at the Kasoa New Market, so traders and night security personnel were not present when the fire broke out.

Personnel from the Ghana National Fire Service deployed four fire tenders to the scene following a distress call, but access to the market was impeded.

The firefighters were able to contain the inferno after three hours. Goods worth thousands of cedis were destroyed.

The traders accused the firefighters of responding late to the disaster, but Acting Chief Fire Officer, Kofi Forson will take none of the accusations.

He said four fire tenders were deployed to contain the inferno, adding that they responded promptly.

The Area National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) Zonal Officer, Christopher Appiah expressed dissatisfaction with activities at the market.

He said, “A lot of people sleep at the market and so they cook every day. Secondly, the shops were not properly built. We complained to the owner, but he ignored us. The market is not spacious that is why the fire tenders could not easily access the fire to douse. These have been problems.”

The cause of the fire has not been immediately determined, but eyewitnesses suspect it may have been caused by a gas cylinder explosion. For affected traders, the fire has devastated their investments.

But the leadership of the Kasoa New Market Traders Association has announced plans to provide some relief, including money allocations to those affected.

Six months ago, another market in the area was also razed by fire.