Another fire outbreak destroys 4 shops, residential apartment in Calabar

Another fire outbreak on Wednesday occurred in William George Street, off Edgerly in Calabar South Local Government Area (LGA) destroying four shops and a residential apartment.

Although, no fatalities were recorded, the owners of the shops lost properties worth millions of naira, as residents of the area battled to put out the fire.

Supreme news reports that between July 2024 and Jan. 2025, the LGA has witnessed 49 fire incidents which are not unconnected to the crowded nature of the area and growth of shanties.

The Special Adviser to Gov. Bassey Otu of Cross River on Special Duties, Mr Ekpenyong Akiba, during an assessment of the damage, said cases of fire incidents were becoming too much in the LGA.

Akiba added that the State Government was gathering data of the damage to enable it offer the necessary assistance to the victims of the incident.

“It is another wake-up call on the part of the authorities to step up publicity on precautionary measures to prevent future recurrence.

“We have discovered that many people built without specification which is against the master plan of the state over the years.

“Even the state Fire Service has been in a state of comatose with dilapidated facilities and operational vehicles,“ he said.

The adviser added that the governor was trying to renovate the premises of the fire service as well as its operational vehicles, while also collaborating with other agencies for effective service delivery.

Also, the Director-General of the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA), Antigha Gil, noted that the incident was unfortunate but promised to carryout an assessment of the damage and transmit to the state government.

He also used the opportunity to warn residents of the state to endeavour to put of their appliances when they were going out, noting that erratic power supply could cause a spark at any point.

Some of the victims who spoke to news men said they did not know what caused the fire but tried their best to put it out, adding that the state fire service failed to show up.

Other agencies that visited the scene were the Nigerian Red Cross, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the State Commissioner for Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, the Nigeria Police Force among others.