Fire guts private residence at Odorkor Official Town
Fire gutted a 38-year-old house at Odorkor Official Town last Friday at about 1:00p.m. There was no casualty but the landlord and tenants lost properties worth thousands of Ghana cedis.
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The charred body of a dog was found under a bed. But for the timely intervention of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS), the fire would have spread to adjoining houses.
Speaking to the Daily Graphic, eyewitnesses, mostly residents and traders in the area, said the fire might have been started around 1:00p.m. by one of the children of a tenant.
They said when the fire started they quickly called neighbours and their relatives and firefighters to battle the blaze. The Odorkor police were later informed.
Reports gathered by the Daily Graphic said neighbours were in terrible shock, and thus could not hold back their tears.
“The tenants could not be controlled or comforted as a 73-year-old mother of six broke down in tears in sympathy for the fire victims,” the witnesses said.
One unpleasant news was that goods (mostly clothes and shoes) imported by a tenant to sell this Christmas season were engulfed in the fire.
“The tenant was shattered and could not come to terms with such a great loss,” the eyewitnesses said, adding that the fire was so intense that the eight-bedroom house was razed down within 10 to 30 minutes.
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Distress calls and fears
The 73-year-old woman, whose name was given only as Auntie Maggie, narrated how she heard the sound but thought it was the sound of firecrackers being used by the season’s celebrants.
According to her, the unusual sound moved her to see what was actually happening, only to see that the house behind hers was on fire. She quickly prompted a trader opposite her house to call the GNFS.
Other eyewitnesses also called the GNFS and the Ghana Police Service, who responded promptly to the emergency calls. Two fire engines and police vehicles were deployed to the scene to ensure that the fire was put out.
Caution
One of the eyewitnesses asked residents to take precautionary measures to avert any unpleasant events during the Christmas festivities, which has coincided with the harmattan, especially when there were combustible items such as gas and plastic which could contribute to the spread of any fire.