A fire outbreak gutted 50 shops and destroyed properties worth millions of naira in Sokoto’s Old Market yesterday. Fortunately, no lives were lost in the incident, although the cause of the fire is yet to be ascertained.

The Sokoto State Governor, Ahmed Aliyu, has commiserated with the victims of the fire outbreak, pledging the state government’s support to affected traders.

The governor described the incident as unfortunate and appealed to traders whose shops were affected to accept it as the will of Almighty Allah. He said: “The impact of this inferno goes beyond the affected traders; it also affects the government and the entire people of Sokoto State.”

The governor said the market served as a major source of livelihood for a large number of residents in the state. Aliyu assured the leadership of the Sokoto State Traders Association of his administration’s determination to support traders affected by the incident.

He prayed to Almighty Allah to prevent future occurrences and urged the affected traders to continue to seek divine protection over their investments. The governor also commended the prompt response of the Sokoto State Fire Service and the traders, which helped to prevent the fire from spreading to other shops.