On January 19, 2021, fire razed the central market built three years ago in Sokoto, the seat of the caliphate.writes on the fears and expectation of traders in the market, which recorded a similar fire incident 15 years ago
“The last time the market got burnt about fifteen years ago, some of us relocated to the roadside and continue our business, until when government relocated us and rebuild the shops. The so called compensation then, was unimaginable. My husband was alive then and very popular within the market because he had seven shops, selling different wears.
He recalled, “I got a call from a brother living around Hajiya Halima area, who informed me of the fire outbreak in the early hours of the day, when I was fetching water at UDUTH quarters. I hurried down, only to be welcome with thick, dark smoke in the air. Eventually, when we gained entrance into the market, my three shops had been consume by the fire. The remnant Agro Allied Chemicals not burnt, have been contaminated by the heavy smoke.
“By the time I was able to get near the main entrance gate, we begged that the entrance gate should be opened for us to see, if we could salvage our wares. Our pleas and cries fell on a deaf ear, until our sweat ended in ruins before our very eyes. What we heard was that, the fire started around our section of the market, but nobody could explain the cause of the fire because, there was no electricity in the market.
Okoro narrated that the news of the inferno got to him when he was about taking his wife who complained of pains in her stomach throughout the night preceding the fire incident, when one of his brother came to his house and inform him about the unfortunate incident. On his next line of action, he explained that his attempt to secure a place in the open space ended up a mirage as the amount being demanded was outrageous.