A massive fire ripped through the Racecourse Market in Bantama, Kumasi, on Monday (11 March), causing millions of cedis in damages and injuring one firefighter.
The blaze, which began around midnight, engulfed dozens of stalls constructed from metal and wood. The inferno destroyed foodstuffs, valuables, and other merchandise, leaving many traders devastated.
While battling the flames, firefighters encountered a hostile response from a crowd who believed they had delayed their arrival. This resulted in an attack on the crew, with one firefighter sustaining injuries from stones and projectiles thrown by the mob.
Peter Addai, the public relations officer of the Ashanti Regional Fire Service, addressed the misunderstanding on the Big Bulletin on Monday (11 March).
He clarified that the fire department received the call at 2:06am and arrived at the scene within three minutes.
“They perceive we delayed,” Addai emphasised. “We got the call at 0206 hours and we got there by 0209 hours. It took us about three minutes to get to the fire scene.”
“What they fail to appreciate is that they did not report the fire on time. There is a difference between the time of report and the time of identifying the fire. So when they identified the fire from media reports, the fire started around 12am thereabout, but they failed to report to us until about 2:06am.”
Addai also revealed that one firefighter who sustained injuries during the attack has received treatment at a local hospital and has been discharged. “He’s been sent to the hospital, treated, and discharged.”
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