Tragedy has befallen the Sabon Gari Palm Oil market of Bogobiri in Calabar, Cross River State following a fire outbreak that razed down as many shops as one could count.
The sad incident, CONCERSEER reports occurred on Friday afternoon (June 16) at the Barracks Road side of Bogobiri.
The cause of the fire is yet-to-be-ascertained but eyewitnesses said the fire started at about 2-3 pm.
“We do not know what caused the fire but the fire service responded, though, a significant part of the area burnt beyond recovery.
“It was sad that despite the struggle to quell the fire, some hoodlums took advantage of it and started looting things from the area. If not for Operation Akpakwu, I wonder what would have been the outcome – the looting could have been worst than the fire”, a source said.
CONVERSEER further gathered that a call was put across when the incident started and firefighters detachment from the Federal Fire Service responded, and their response yielded a significant result.
Also, the Cross River State Security Adviser, Maj. Gen. Okoi Ubi Obono (Retd.), led a detachment of Operation Akpakwu (a joint security outfit set up by the State Government) when reports of hoodlums pillaging the premises went out.
This is coming in when the country is facing its worst economic woes following the sudden removal of fuel subsidies without setting up palliatives to cushion the effect.
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