Fire Ravages Shops At Asawase, Destroys Vehicles, Motorbikes

A fierce fire outbreak has destroyed a cluster of fitting shops at Mempeasem, in Asawase, a suburb of Kumasi, leaving in its wake massive losses.

The blaze, which broke out around 2:00 a.m. on Monday, consumed more than 100 motorcycles, 10 vehicles and at least 15 container shops before it was brought under control by personnel of the Ghana National Fire Service.

Properties worth thousands of Ghana cedis were reduced to ashes, with several artisans and business owners counting their losses.

Although the exact cause of the fire is yet to be established, eyewitnesses suspect that persistent power outages in the area may have triggered an electrical fault leading to the incident.

The fire also affected a number of businesses, including a laundry service employing about 30 workers, while over 100 artisans who depend on the area for their livelihoods have been displaced.

Victims are appealing to the government and the general public for urgent support to help them recover and rebuild their businesses.

One of the affected artisans, Masa Kojo, described the incident as a huge setback.

“This place has never experienced any fire outbreak since we started working here. As for the cause, only experts can determine that. By the time the fire service arrived, the damage had already been done,” he said.

Workers at the destroyed laundry facility also expressed distress over the loss of customers’ items.

“We had many customers’ belongings here, and everything has been burnt. We couldn’t salvage anything. Now the burden is on us, and we don’t know what to do,” they lamented.

Meanwhile, residents have called on the Ghana National Fire Service to intensify public education on fire safety, while urging authorities to investigate the cause of the incident to prevent future occurrences.