A fire incident occurred at the Enugu Motor Spare Parts Market, commonly known as Tinker, destroying goods worth millions of naira in over 40 shops.
The fire also claimed the life of the watch officer of the State Fire Service, Engr. Chigozie Ugwu who collapsed and died after leading his team to stop the fire.
President of the Enugu Motor Spare Parts Dealers Association, Mike Nome, revealed that the fire originated from a shop in the early hours of Wednesday.
“Our security men promptly rushed to stop it when they noticed the fire. But when they got to the shop, they noticed that it was further locked with burglary proof,” Nome stated.
He explained that as the security team attempted to break into the locked shop, the fire escalated to the adjacent shop, which operated a restaurant.
A gas cylinder inside the restaurant exploded, leading to the rapid spread of the fire to several shops.
Nome further shared the prompt response from the state fire service, stating, “I called the state fire service around 1.00 am, and they promptly came in less than 15 minutes to stop the fire from spreading to other areas.”
Despite their efforts, approximately 40 traders lost their shops in the fire.
The Chief Fire Officer of the Enugu State Fire and Emergency Service, Engr. Okwudili Ohaa, confirmed the incident, noting that they arrived at about 1.15 am with three fire trucks.
He expressed the dedication of Engr. Chigozie Ugwu, who, despite recovering from an illness, joined the firefighting team and lost his life in the line of duty.
“He was a dedicated officer, who loved to lead by example. He was not actually supposed to come to work because he was still recuperating from an illness, but due to his passion for the job, he decided to join the team,” Ohaa stated.
The fire was eventually brought under control after more than two hours of intense efforts.
