Scores of Shops Burnt as Another Kano Market Gutted by Fire
Barely one week after a devastating inferno ravaged the popular Singer Market, another fire outbreak has struck a major commercial hub in Kano, destroying dozens of shops and leaving traders counting fresh losses.
The latest incident occurred in the early hours of Friday at the Fatima Simra Multi-Purpose Market located in the Dakata area of Kano State. Eyewitnesses said the blaze started around 5:40 a.m., rapidly spreading through sections of the market before firefighters could bring it under control. Preliminary reports indicate that about 50 shops were affected in the inferno. The affected businesses were largely involved in oil processing as well as plastic and nylon recycling. Goods worth millions of naira were reportedly destroyed. Traders at the scene lamented what they described as a delayed response by emergency services, which they said allowed the fire to intensify before intervention. As of the time of filing this report, there were no confirmed casualties, while authorities were still assessing the full extent of the damage. The latest outbreak comes just days after a massive fire razed large portions of Singer Market, one of Kano’s busiest trading centres, where over 1,000 shops were reportedly destroyed and losses ran into billions of naira. The incident triggered nationwide concern and prompted federal and state authorities to pledge financial support to affected traders. In response to the earlier disaster, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu expressed sympathy with victims and directed relevant agencies to investigate the cause of the fire and improve safety standards in major markets across the country. The recurrence of market fires in Kano has raised fresh concerns about fire safety compliance, electrical installations, and emergency preparedness in densely populated commercial centres. Stakeholders are calling for urgent reforms, including stricter enforcement of safety regulations and improved firefighting infrastructure to prevent further tragedies.
