By Patrick Obia
Some residents of Essien Street in Calabar South Local Government Area who lost their homes to fire on Wednesday are currently counting their losses.
CrossRiverWatch broke the story after a victim, Ntiero Ekanem called the newsroom mistaking the contact for the Cross River State Fire Service. This Newspaper promptly called the service and informed the firefighters at the Margaret Ekpo International Airport as well. Safety professionals were contacted too, and the Federal Fire Service was promptly mobilised.
But, as at the time the firefighters arrived, the fire had done considerable damage, with Ntiero telling our Newsroom when she called, that her house was razed already.
When this reporter visited the scene, a neighbor who identified himself only as Godswill said the cause of the fire was a surge in electricity, which led to a spark in one of the house razed. The spark, with what some say may have been faulty cabling, caused the fire. Godswill house, which is a few meters away, was not affected.
He thanked God no life was lost, adding that a little girl was inside the house but ran out screaming to alert neighbors when she noticed the fire. Mr. Godswill however, sympathised with his neighbors who lost all their belongings.
He lamented the delay in response time by the firefighters and wondered why several calls to the State Fire Service yielded no result.
According to him, a victim of the incident fainted when she arrived to see that her home was gone. Others were in no mood to speak on the incident.
Below are pictures of the unfortunate incident…
