A businessman, Mike Chuks, has said he lost a truck worth N30m used for business purposes to a late-night Saturday fire that burnt the Obasanjo Trailer Park in Ogere, Remo-North Local Government Area of Ogun State.
Chuks, in an interview with PUNCH Metro at the scene of the fire on Sunday, disclosed that the absence of firefighters to curtail the fire led to his truck getting burnt.
PUNCH Online reported on Sunday that one tanker and several makeshift shops were destroyed in the fire incident.
Our correspondent, who visited the scene on Sunday, gathered that the fire started at about 11 pm on Saturday.
The fire was said to have emanated from one of the shops before gutting the truck that was under repair at the park.
An eyewitness who identified himself simply as Musa told our correspondent that the combined efforts of occupants of the park brought the fire under control.
He said, “The fire started about 11 pm when we were already sleeping. I heard a loud blast, and before we realised what was happening, there was a fire.
“People around used buckets to fetch water from the gutter to quench the fire because there were no firefighters nearby.”
Musa added that efforts to get the state fire service to put the fire under control were unsuccessful as there were none within the area.
Narrating his loss, Chuks disclosed that he had brought the truck to the park for minor repair, after which he received a call from one of his boys who informed him about the incident.
He added that he was informed that the fire emanated from a nearby makeshift shop close to where his truck was parked.
“I lost my Aero 5 truck to the fire incident. I learnt that the fire caught one of the shops and extended to my truck. The truck is worth N30m. Two trucks were affected, but it was mine that got burnt completely.
“This incident will affect my business. I don’t know what to say and I’ve left everything in God’s hands. I am hoping I will get the necessary help to recover from this loss.
“There were no firefighters on the ground to curtail the fire incident, which could have prevented my truck from burning,” he said.
When contacted, the Director of the Ogun State Fire Service, Fatai Adefala, told our correspondent in a telephone conversation on Sunday that the fire service was aware of the incident and that firefighters were mobilised to the scene.
He, however, said further details were yet to be available.
“I know they went there at that time, but I couldn’t get further information because I am down.”
Meanwhile, the spokesperson for the Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Agency, Babatunde Akinbiyi, in a telephone conversation with our correspondent, noted that injured persons at the scene of the incident were taken to Victory Hospital in Ogere while the fire was brought under control through a combined effort of members of the community, TRACE, and the police.
“According to an eyewitness, the injured persons had been taken to Victory Hospital, Ogere, by their family. TRACE operatives went to the hospital to confirm the numbers and sympathise with the injured, but were told that the victims had been discharged,” Akinbiyi added.
