By Muyid Deen Suleman
Kumasi March 16, GNA – The Ashanti Regional Coordinating Council (ARCC) has ordered the temporary closure of the new Kejetia market in Kumasi following Wednesday’s fire outbreak in some parts of the market.
The Council has also set up a committee to investigate the cause of the fire outbreak and recommend measures to prevent future occurrences.
Mr Simon Osei Mensah, Ashanti Regional Minister, announced this after touring the market to inspect the damages caused by the fire.
The fire outbreak which was said to have started around 16:30 hours on Wednesday afternoon, affected many shops and destroyed merchandised worth millions of Ghana cedis.
Mr Osei Mensah, who is also the chairman of the Regional Security Council, was accompanied by officials from the Ghana National Fire Service, the National Disaster Management Organization (NADMO), the Police and the Kumasi metropolitan assembly.
Mr Osei Mensah, expressed worry about the extent of damage caused by the fire and said the Committee would work to identify all the challenges in the market and recommend effective measures to address them.
He called on the affected traders to remain calm as the authorities work to find appropriate solutions to the problems.
Mr Henry Giwah, Ashanti Regional Fire Commander, said the Service had launched investigations to ascertain the cause of the fire in the market.
He said the installed fire equipment at the market were not compatible with that of the Ghana National Fire Service, and that posed as a challenge in the fight to control the fire.
GNA