By Amos Igbebe, Asaba
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Goods worth millions of naira were, Sunday, lost to an evening inferno which consumed the interior sections of the largest furniture emporium, Interior Legends Limited, in Asaba, the Delta State capital.
The fire which was, however, contained due to the timely intervention of the Delta State Fire Service men, besides the quantity of furniture it consumed, razed portions of the two storey building which housed the emporium in the city.
One of the eyewitnesses who raised alarm over the fire incident, Mrs. Helen Oneke, alleged that the fire was caused by burning waste deposited behind the expansive building which was fenced away from the prying eyes of members of the public.
Mrs. Oneke who operates a restaurant besides the emporium, said she was the first to raise alarm over the incident, the result of which led to a distress call put forward to the State Commissioner for Special Duties, Pastor Powell Ojogho.
It was learnt that the smoke which engulfed the building sent shiver down the spine of the emporium Manager, who declined to give her name as at the time of filing the report.
Asked to comment on the fire incident, she told journalists that she was not in the mood to speak to media men.
It was gathered that she poured venom on her staff and the security officers for not remaining at their duty post, saying the fire would have been averted if they had been diligent at their duty post.
As the fire broke out and began consuming the interior sections of the Legend, staff of a nearby furniture dealer, Permolit, were seen evacuating their furniture for fear of the fire spreading to their section.
Commissioner for Special Duties, Pastor Powell Ojogho, who mobilized men of the state fire service to the scene, advised the public to be safety conscious, noting that the emporium had only one exit point which was under lock and key as the men of the fire service arrived the scene.
He said it took the bravery of the fire service men to put out the fire as they promptly responded to the distress call put forward to them.
When our correspondent visited the scene, men of the state fire service were battling to put off the fire with two tankers loaded with water.
