Takoradi: Fire guts warehouse, destroys 3 other shops

Fire in the early hours of Saturday destroyed a warehouse and three other shops near the Takoradi Central Market in the Western Region.

The cause of the fire is yet to be established. When Graphic Online got to the scene this morning [August 15, 2020], the roofing of the four affected buildings had caved-in.

The Regional Public Relations Officer of the Ghana National Fire Service, Mr Emmanuel Bonney, said at about 00:32hrs this morning, the regional command received a distress call from its Market Circle Fire Post for support.

He said even though there were fire engines already on the ground fighting the fire, the intensity required additional engines.

That, he explained, “We then mobilised seven fire engines from Ghana Ports and Habours Authority (GPHA), Air Force and Ghana Navy to assist.”

Mr Bonney said it took the fire fighters more than five hours to bring the fire under control, pointing out that “This is because the warehouse which also serves a wholesale point has a lot of combustible materials.”

He said the combustible materials in the warehouse were helping the fire to spread to other nearby facilities.

“We were careful and tactical to safeguard the banks and the fuel station close by to avert apocalyptic situation in the metropolis,” Mr Bonney explained, adding

“What we did was to contain the fire in order to save financial institutions and Total fuel station near the fire point and fleet of vehicles on the street.”

The Western Regional Minister, Mr Konina Okyere Darko Mensah visited the scene and described the incident as “unfortunate.”

More later…