Over 300 shops destroyed in Nowshera market fire

PESHAWAR: More than 300 shops selling garments, cosmetics and crockery were destroyed after a fire broke out in a market in Nowshera district on Saturday night, residents said. They said traders suffered losses running into millions of rupees, while the blaze was brought under control early on Sunday morning.

Market president Ghazi Rehman said this was the third time the market had been hit by a major fire and added that losses in the latest incident were greater than in previous cases. He said traders had long been asking for a fire tender but their demand had not been met.

Speaking about the incident, Mr Rehman called for an inquiry and said the fire appeared to have started from all sides of the market at the same time. He also said there was no electricity supply when the blaze erupted. "Who should we seek assistance from?" he asked.

Mr Rehman said traders affected in earlier fires had still not received compensation. He added that road blockades delayed firefighting efforts and said the cumulative losses stood at Rs8 million.

A shopkeeper, Rehman Hussain, said he alone suffered losses of Rs2.5 million. He said market contractors collected rent in advance but did not arrange fire tenders, and urged the provincial government to provide them. "We don’t understand how the fire began from all four sides at the same time, and that too, in the absence of power supply," he added.