Traders in Nairobi's Gikomba market are counting losses after a fire gutted down their premises destroying goods of unknown value.
Kenyans.co.ke has learnt that a fire, which began at 12:30am on Friday, burnt major businesses along Molo Line area also known as Ghorofani.
Traders who stock women clothing along the area did not salvage anything in the night inferno. The Friday, August 6, fire also burnt down at least 4 residential flats.
Residents of Molo Line also spent the night in the cold after the inferno burned down the buildings they have called home for decades.
Fire engines from the Nairobi Fire department were at the scene trying to put out the inferno that razed down a major section of the market.
In June 2020, Interior PS Karanja Kibicho visited Gikomba after a fire burned down businesses at the market. He pledged that the government would compensate traders who lost goods in the fire.
PS Kibicho also announced that the government would launch formal investigations into the fires that seem to plague the market on a regular schedule
"As directed by the HE, President Uhuru Kenyatta, PS Kibicho PS Charles Hinga, Nairobi Metropolitan Services Director General Mohamed Badi and area MP Yussuf Hassan are hosting leaders from Gikomba Market at the ACC's office after assessing the damage caused by last night's fire incident. The Govt pledged to find a permanent solution to the problem," read a statement sent out by the Interior Ministry.
The fire destroyed an unknown number of structures at the cereals and 'mitumba' sections at Gikomba market opposite COTU offices in Nairobi on June 25 2020.
The inferno, which reportedly broke out at around 3:00 am was still raging on at 6:30 a.m. with its source or point of origin yet to be established.
Traders battled the raging inferno throughout the wee hours of the morning in a bid to salvage some of their property, but it proved a futile exercise.
“The fire started from this side of COTU offices and spread towards the fish market. As it is we have lost everything. There are also houses that have been burnt but luckily no one was hurt. They all managed to escape,” one of the traders at the market revealed to the media.
Residents of Old Racecourse Estate, Kariokor, were plunged into darkness following the incident, with Kenya Power opting to shut down power lines in the area.
"The mainline has been controlled due to a fire incidence in Gikomba. Power will be restored as soon as possible," Kenya Power tweeted.
Several such incidents have caused severe damage at the popular market over the years, sometimes leading to deaths.
