Some residents affected by a fire outbreak this dawn at Sabon Zongo in the Asokore Mampong Municipality of the Ashanti region have appealed to the government for support, as the situation has left them stranded.
The fire believed to have started around 4 am, and swept through a number of shops, makeshift structures and a part of a school.
According to the residents, about 150 motorcycles were burnt.
Persons who sleep in these makeshift structures said all their belongings including monies were burnt, and joined other affected persons to call on the government to come to their aid.
Some of the affected residents spoke to Citi News:
“We need government and the MCE’s support. They are our leaders. So we’re calling on them to support us with money so that we can invest again,” one gentleman said.
“When I saw the fire, I immediately took my child and run away. I couldn’t salvage anything and I can’t even call my family members to inform them of what has happened,” a lady cried.
Another gentleman also said: “We sell motorcycles here and everything has been burnt. I’ve lost money in the fire. I rear goats as well and they’ve all been burnt. That’s why we’re pleading with the leaders to come to our aid.’
Meanwhile, the Asokore Mampong Municipal Director of the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO) Samuel Gyimah said they are still assessing the situation to know how best the affected persons can be supported.
“There is a kenkey seller here who we have told severally to move from here because of the fire she uses in cooking. We suspect that the fire started from her. People’s properties, motorcycles, and so many things have been burnt. What NADMO does is to take an assessment of the burnt things, before sending it to our Regional Director so that the government can help them. So that is what we are doing now,” he stated.
According to the Ghana National Fire Service, no casualties were recorded as at the time they were called to put off the fire up to the time they were able to bring the situation under control.
Western Region records 328 fire cases in 2018
A report issued by the Western Regional Fire Service in January this year showed that a total of 328 fire cases were recorded in the Western Region last year as against 415 in 2017.
Out of the number, 25 injuries and three deaths bushfires in 2018 as compared to 196 injuries and three deaths in 2017.
The report indicated that residential and bush fires were on the increase from the first to the third quarter as compared to industrial, commercial, institutional and electrical fires.
Ghana recorded 5,531 fire outbreaks across the country in 2018 as compared to the 2017 total of 4,544 cases according to the Ghana National Fire Service.