No fewer than 37 shops and stalls were razed down by an early morning inferno in Potiskum market, Yobe State.
The Chairman of United Marketers Association of Potiskum, Nasiru Mato, said the fire outbreak, whose cause was yet to be ascertained, began around 3:00 am Monday.
A resident, Bello Musa, said they mobilised people to put out the fire but they could only do little as the inferno intensified beyond their efforts.
Meanwhile, Yobe State Governor, Mai Mala Buni, has commiserated with the victims and directed relevant agencies to take proactive measures.
Buni, in a statement by his spokesman, Mamman Mohammed, said he had directed the State Emergency Management Agency (SEMA) to provide the victims with all the necessary emergency support and to take stock of damages caused by the inferno.
Also, Senate President Ahmad Lawan has urged the Yobe State Government to investigate the cause of the fire outbreak with a view to averting the recurrence of the disaster.
Lawan, in a statement by his media aide, Ola Awoniyi, commiserated with victims of the fire incident and prayed for the quick recovery of the injured persons.
He also called for public support for those whose means of livelihood has been wiped out by the fire disaster.
