DISASTER!

Wed, 05 Jul 2017 14:16:04 +0000

By CHINTU MALAMBO

DISASTER  has fallen on Lusaka dwellers following a harrowing inferno that swept through Lusaka City market, destroying property and stalls worth millions of Kwacha.

Lusaka city marketeers wailed and watched helplessly yesterday as the ragging inferno swept through the trading area, reducing thousands of stalls to ashes.

Men and women, with tears streaming down their faces, stood helplessly and watched as the Fire Brigade officers battled a ferocious inferno that swept through the stands as if it had a life of its own.

More than 4,000 stalls are believed to have been destroyed in the fire that gutted Lusaka City Market in the early hours of Tuesday morning, destroying goods worth millions of Kwachas.

In an interview with the Daily Nation, an eye witness and affected trader Matthew Lungu, could barely contain his emotions, and tearfully said he had lost his life savings in that he had more than K50,000 worth of goods destroyed.

Mr Lungu said that the fire started in unclear circumstances and it was only noticed at about 05:00hrs when he heard a loud bang near the entrance of the market.

He said suddenly there was smoke and shouting as those who had gone to the market early realized that there was fire spreading fast.

Sadly he could not save any of his property as he had to rush out to avoid suffocating from smoke inhalation.

He said that he had been running a photocopying and printing business and that he did not manage to retrieve anything from that fire, as everything was destroyed.

He lamented that what transpired was a drawback in his life because he depended on the printing business for survival. “I received this news with great shock because my family and I survive on my printing and photocopying business, meaning that all my computers, printers and everything has burnt to ashes.

“Honestly, I am very devastated and do not know what to do or where to start from,” he said.

Another affected shop owner Muwanga Kashikiti complained, citing local terrorism as the cause of the fire, he said that the development was sad and that the effects of such incidences were only felt by a poor Zambian.

“If you look at the extent of the damage, almost 80 per cent of the market has been reduced to ashes, a lot of families have been affected, and bread winners will become beggars as a result of this sad development and our children will be forced to drop out of school.

“It is clear that this is some sort of local terrorism because, people who have done this have on many occasions, threatened to burn down this market and it is not surprising,” she said.

Ms. Kashikiti charged that firefighters needed to improve on their service delivery, as they arrived hours later when the inferno had already destroyed the entire trading centre.

Most marketeers had gathered in groups and were seen comforting each other.

When the Vice President, Inonge Wina arrived at the gutted market, marketeers made efforts to talk to her but security kept them at bay.