Businesses destroyed as fire razes Hargeisa market

HARGEYSA- Hundreds of businesses were destroyed on Friday evening in Hargeisa's main market. Fire fighters struggled for hours to put out the blaze, which engulfed major stalls and buildings within the Central Business District of the northern city of Somalia.  

Residents of Hargeisa reported that the enormous fire destroyed large areas of the market. The damage caused by the fire is said to be unprecedented, with authorities yet to issue a comprehensive statement with regard to the genesis of the fire. 

The fire at the market has been described as a “national disaster” by various media houses. Experts said the economic impact will be crushing to the entire community for several months to come.  

Abdikarim Ahmed Mooge, the youthful mayor of Hargeisa who was elected 11 months ago, appealed for water trucks and bulldozers to help put out the fire at the market, urging residents to give way on the roads so that emergency responders reach the scene.

According to authorities in the breakaway region of Somalia, at least 2,000 businesses were likely destroyed, with goods worth hundreds of millions of dollars lost as a result of the Hargeisa market fire. 

This is the first time the market was affected by the fire and the cause is yet to be established. Police in the city have commenced investigations to establish the cause of the fire. 

Hargeisa main market plays host to hundreds of businesspeople not only from Somalia but also across the borders. Kenyans and Ethiopians are said to have invested massively in Somaliland.

But Somalia has often maintained that Somaliland remains part of her territory, warning that any contrary opinion would meet resistance. The region has been ranked by the World Bank as the fastest growing state within the federal republic of Somalia. 

GAROWE ON- LINE