Over 200 structures around the Konkomba market in Accra have been gutted by fire.
The incident occurred on Sunday morning.
Some affected residents who spoke to Citi News said timely intervention by fire service personnel would have prevented some structures from being destroyed.
According to them, the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) did not respond promptly to their calls, hence the fast spread of the fire.
The cause of the fire is yet to be known, but some residents claim that it started after a gas cylinder explosion from a nearby eatery.
“I was called that my store is on fire. I rushed here and realized that I have lost my fashion items including nails, and eyelashes among others which I bought with a loan. I am very disappointed that the Fire Service did not respond quickly to the calls. Even when they came, they said there was no water in the fire tender. A lot of properties have been destroyed,” said one of the victims, Hilda Mantey.
Another victim, Hamza Faisal told Citi News that the residents began to put out the fire themselves before the fire service came in much later.
He also appealed for support as he said many of them have been displaced following the incident.
“We started pouring water and doing other things in an attempt to quench the fire. We called the fire service several times before they responded. About 200 structures are burnt, and the incident has affected a lot of people. We don’t really know the cause of the fire yet. I will appeal to anyone who can help us to do so as we really need their help,” he said.