Posted by ODOGWU EMEKA ODOGWU on
Not less than 25 lock up shops behind the school of Social Sciences and property worth over 500 million naira was last Friday gutted by fire at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka.
Not less than 25 lock up shops behind the school of Social Sciences and property worth over 500 million naira was last Friday gutted by fire at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Awka.
Sources at the school to Sunday Champion that the incident was as a result of shoddy electrical work at the wooden lock up shops that sparked off the fire over the night.
Most of the victims whose only source of livelihood depended on the burnt shops were speechless when Sunday Champion visited the scene while the only shop that survived the fire was an iron shop on empty container.
Among the things that got burnt in the lock up shops included computer sets, photocopying machines, generators, typewriting machines and other numerous electrical appliances found in business centers.
Public relations officer of the school, Mr. Godson Okafor, said the management is saddened that thousands of people dependant on the shops for their survival will be grossly affected while blaming the incident on carelessness and incompetence.
Mr Okafor reiterated the management's advise that people should switch off all their electrical appliances before living office or shop at the end of the day, noting that the incident was avoidable if the electrical connections were rightly and completely done.
It will be recalled that the department of Mass Communication in the faculty of Social Sciences was barely two months ago gutted by fire, even as it consumed documents and property running into millions.