A devastating fire has destroyed a large yam storage facility, a pickup van and other valuable items at the residence of the Chief of Rafin-Daji, HRH Alhaji Musa Adamu.
The incident occurred in Rafin-Daji, located in Gurdi ward of the Abaji Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory.
It was gathered that the fire broke out in the early hours of Saturday at about 2:12 a.m., while the traditional ruler was asleep, according to Daily Trust.
Confirming the incident, the Secretary to the palace, Danjuma Saidu, said the cause of the fire is yet to be determined.
He disclosed that the “yam band” (storage structure) attached to the chief’s house was completely consumed by the blaze, resulting in the loss of several truckloads of yams and the chief’s pickup van parked close to the store.
Saidu explained that the chief had only recently completed transporting his farm produce to the house before the unfortunate incident.
“Early Saturday morning, the fire suddenly broke out in the storage area before spreading to the chief’s living quarters, destroying further valuables,’’ Saidu added.
He further stated that thick smoke rising from the storage area alerted the chief, who rushed out but met the yams and vehicle already burning.
He said, ‘’Efforts by community members to extinguish the blaze were unsuccessful due to the harsh harmattan winds, which caused the fire to spread rapidly.
“In fact, nobody can say for sure what caused the fire, but we thank God that no lives were lost.’’
Meanwhile, the Chairman of the Abaji Area Council, Alhaji Abubakar Umar Abdullahi, has expressed sympathy with the affected traditional ruler.
A delegation sent by the council on Sunday was led by the Council Secretary, Agaba Nuku, and included the Supervisory Councilor for Health, Abdulkadir Yahaya Mamagi, as well as the Supervisory Councilor for Agriculture.
