The Federal Capital Territory Fire Service has identified the cause of the fire that engulfed the two-story Samsung Headquarters in Wuse 2, Abuja late Monday night and into Tuesday morning.
The fire was attributed to careless welding activities near a stack of empty, combustible cartons inside the facility.
FCT Fire Spokesman, Mr. Ibrahim Tauheed made this revelation in a statement released on Tuesday.
He confirmed that no casualties were reported, but the two-story building filled with Samsung products was entirely consumed by the fire.
Tauheed disclosed that Mrs. Ngozi, the owner of Mozini Spa situated behind Furniture House, placed a distress call to the Fire Service about the incident at 7:38 pm.
The Asokoro Fire Station was the first to arrive at the scene at 7:43 p.m. However, they encountered hostility from some individuals who began pelting their fire truck with stones.
He stated, “To ensure the safety of the firefighters and their equipment, the leader of the crew, DSF Ahmed Katsina, directed the driver to take an alternate route to Ahmadu Bello Way and alerted the police control room. Upon the arrival of Nigeria Police personnel, they fired shots in the air and used tear gas to disperse the unruly crowd.”
According to Tauheed, this delay allowed the fire to intensify and spread throughout the building. Nevertheless, determined efforts were made to prevent the fire from spreading to nearby structures and a nearby filling station.
He also stated that while many were concerned that the fire might reach other buildings and the nearby filling station, with the combined efforts of multiple stations and agencies, this was successfully averted.
The fire raged for over six hours, from 7:38 pm on November 6 until 01:37 am on November 7, before it was finally brought under control.
Acting Director of FCT Fire Service, Engr. Zacchaeus Adebayo commended the firefighters for their dedication and pledged to promptly enhance operational conditions.
