Fire engulfed four shops and a residential apartment in William George Street, off Edgerly in Calabar South Local Government Area (LGA) of Cross River state.
It was gathered that there were no fatalities but the owners of the shops recorded loss of properties worth millions of naira, as residents of the area battled to contain the fire.
It was reported that between last July and January, the LGA has witnessed 49 fire incidents which are not unconnected to the crowded nature of the area and growth of shanties.
During an assessment of the damage, Special Adviser to the Governor on Special Duties, Ekpenyong Akiba said that cases of fire incidents were becoming too much in the LGA.
Akiba reiterated 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.
According to him, 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.
Meanwhile, the Director-General of the State Emergency Management Agency, Antigha Gil explained that the incident was unfortunate, promising to carry out an assessment of the damage and transmit it to the state government.
He also warned residents of the state to endeavour to put off their appliances when they were going out, noting that erratic power supply could cause a spark at any point.
