A fire outbreak has burnt down a popular mall in Benin city, Edo state leaving many in distress.
The mall was razed by the fire
A blazing inferno on Sunday razed a popular shopping mall, Phill-Hallmark Supermarket, in Oredo Local Government Area of Edo State capital, destroying goods worth billions of naira.
Information gathered revealed that the fire started at about 2am, when only a few of the staff were present. The supermarket which has several sections including boutique, bakery and other areas had goods worth billions of naira destroyed as most of the owners are not even aware of the incident since the incident happened on a Sunday.
The mall was also said to have over 50 employees and had recently undergone a major renovation, Punch reported.
As at about 9am, officials of the state fire service were seen battling to put out the fire. The firemen extinguished the fire at about 11:30am.
The Governor of the state, Godwin Obaseki was at the scene of the incident and sympathized with the victims as he inspected the extent of damage to the mall.
A customer, who identified herself as Mrs. Grace, expressed displeasure over what she described as a poor response in extinguishing the fire.
She said, “I came to shop. But I am shocked because from what Hallmark has, this (destroyed property) is running into billions. How can a place like Hallmark burn down like this?”