Personnel of the Ghana National Fire Service last Monday prevented what could have become a devastating fire at the Kejetia Market in Kumasi in the Ashanti Region.
The fire was said to have started around 8:30 am at a wholesale shop on the first floor, which sells matches and some cosmetic products.
The swift response from fire officers stationed in the market brought the fire under control and prevented it from spreading to other adjoining shops.
It is unclear what could have triggered the fire but it was gathered that the combustible nature of the items in the warehouse could have resulted in the fire due to excessive heat in the shop.
Ban on combustibles
The fire incident came barely two months after the Chief Executive of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly, Richard Ofori-Agyeman Boadi, banned the sale of combustible and other explosive materials in the Kejetia Market to avert any fire outbreak.
He gave the traders selling such items up to March 1, 2026, to pack out and relocate to the Racecourse Market. It affected traders selling items such as carbide, petrol, acid, gas, black powder and other highly inflammable materials.
“We have banned the sale of combustible materials in the market to avert the persistent fire incidents, which often lead to the destruction of items and running into millions of Ghana cedis,” he said.
GNFS officials
Officials of the GNFS stationed at the market, who rushed to the scene after receiving a distress call, said they used all the fire equipment installed there to quickly douse the fire.
Station Officer I Maxwell Partey, who led the team, said due to the installation of modern fire equipment in the market, they were able to respond to the incident without any difficulty, saying, “With the facilities in the market, we are always ready to respond to fire incidents”.
Meanwhile, investigations have commenced to ascertain the cause of the fire.
The affected shop suffered partial smoke damage, including about 250 boxes of matches, nail polish chemicals and some deodorants.
Preliminary investigations indicated that the fire resulted from the spontaneous ignition of stockpiled flammable substances mixed with combustible materials in a poorly ventilated area.
No injuries or fatalities were recorded.
Owner
Recounting how the fire started, the shop owner, identified as Alice Adu Gyamfi, said after opening the shop in the morning, she started arranging her items in front of the shop, only to be informed by a passerby that her shop was on fire.
She said she rushed into the shop and saw smoke coming from the roof, which quickly spread throughout the shop because of the flammable items inside.
She could not fathom what could have triggered the fire and indicated that she had lost a chunk of her items as a result of the incident, saying, “the items are always supplied to me on credit and I pay back after selling them”.
The shop owner, who could not hold back her tears, added: “I was supplied the items last Saturday (April 18) only for the shop to be gutted by fire, resulting in the destruction of all of them”.
She added that she had lost all her capital and called for public support to help her get back on her feet, repay her debts and return to business as quickly as possible.
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Source:
www.graphic.com.gh
