An early morning inferno on Monday gutted no fewer than 44 shops and stores at the popular Singa Market in Kano State, leaving traders counting their losses.

Confirming the incident in a statement issued late Monday, the Public Relations Officer of the Kano State Fire Service, ACFO Saminu Yusif Abdullahi, said the fire broke out around 5:00 a.m.

He explained that the service received a distress call from one Mubarak Muhammad, who alerted the control room to the blaze.

“Upon arrival, our men found a one-storey building, measuring about 150 by 150 feet and known as Alhaji Abdulmunafi Yunusa House, already engulfed in flames,” Abdullahi stated.

He disclosed that the inferno completely consumed 25 makeshift shops attached to the building’s frontage and 19 stores on the upper floor. However, firefighters were able to prevent the fire from spreading to 24 other shops on the upper floor and all those on the ground floor.

According to Abdullahi, the rescue operation was hampered by poor access to the scene due to trailers parked along the road, which delayed the movement of fire trucks.

The Director of the State Fire Service, Alhaji Sani Anas, led the operation. During an on-site investigation, the team met with the building’s head, Ambassador Garba Ibrahim Mai Maggie, and a security guard, Malam Ibrahim, who disclosed that the entire complex was powered by a single electric switch.

“Based on our findings, we discovered that the switch was poorly managed, and we strongly suspect that an electrical fault originating from the temporary shops triggered the fire,” the statement added.

Meanwhile, authorities have cautioned shop owners and traders to ensure proper electrical installations and avoid overloading power sources in business premises.