Traders at the Garissa open-air market, also known as suuq mugdi, are counting millions of shillings in losses after a fire destroyed the entire market Thursday morning.
The market, which houses over 5,000 small-scale traders specializing in clothing, groceries, electronics, eateries, butchers, and wholesalers, was reduced to ashes in an inferno that began early Thursday morning.
It is unclear what started the fire at 2 a.m., though some of the victims speculated on whether it was an arson attack or an electrical fault.
According to the traders and residents, this is the fifth time the market has burnt in recent years.
Former Garissa governor Nathif Jama who was among the first leaders to visit the market in the morning regretted the turn of events blaming it on the current county administration that was doing nothing to put the fire out.
“It is regrettable that all the firefighting machines that were all operating when I left office have all been grounded,” Jama pointed.
“This is a market that feeds hundreds of thousands of families who earn a living by selling their goods mostly small scale traders and just when they were struggling to recover from the effects of Covid-19 and drought then comes this fire,” he added.
Jama called on the police to carry thorough investigations to ascertain what really caused the fire.
