Fire destroys building in Kumasi

The top floor also served as rented residential accommodation for about 10 families.

No one was hurt, but victims were unable to salvage anything from the blaze.

The cause of the fire was not immediately known, but eyewitnesses said it started from a small corner on top of the 103-year-old building originally constructed by a Lebanese businessman.

Many people, including some victims of the fire, blamed the inactivity of Fire Service personnel for the spread of the blaze.

They claimed a fire engine sent to the site from the GNFS had no water in it.

One of the victims, Mr H.M. Peprah, a tenant who lived in the building with his family, told the Daily Graphic that the Fire Service had to call for reinforcement from other fire stations in Kumasi and beyond but it was too late to salvage anything when they arrived.

According to Mr Peprah, the fire started about 8.30 p.m. when he was in his room with his family.

“I heard shouts that the building was on fire and I came out to see thick black smoke from a small corner,” he said

According to him, occupants rushed out for dear lives and when they came out a fire fighting vehicle was standing close by but the fire fighters complained that there was no water in it.

“All of a sudden there was an explosion and the entire building went up in flames,” he said.

Fire personnel, however, refuted the allegation, saying they had been held back by uneasy access into the building.

The Ashanti Regional Commander of the GNFS, Mr Philip Arhin Mensah, told journalists that the building was very old and access to it was very difficult.

He also stated that the fire had not been reported early, which contributed to the spread.

Built with hard bricks, the building is located close to the Harper Road at Adum.

Near it are the Adum branches of the Ghana Commercial Bank, the Barclays Bank and the Standard Chartered Bank and offices of the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly.

Story: Kwame Asare Boadu