Less than 24 hours after fire swept through more than one hundred shops at French line in Kumasi, victims have begun rebuilding their shops.
This is contrary to directives by city authorities for them to hold on until investigations on the fire are concluded.
The affected traders say they need to return to business immediately to enable them to pay off their loans.
For them, life must bounce back to normalcy regardless of the huge losses they’ve incurred.
“All of us are eager to start work. We are inching closer to Christmas, so we need to make sales. Especially, when most of us have loans to pay. No assistance will come from anywhere, so the earlier we start, the better for us”, an affected trader, Ibrahim Sumaila said.
At the scene of the incident, some affected traders were seen scavenging through the debris to see whether they may be lucky enough to recover some of their items, including money.
Others are also yet to come to terms with reality. For many, they’re just thinking of how to return to business after losing everything.
The impact is unquantifiable, and traders are seeking a helping hand to bounce back to business.
“I am a phone repairer and dealer, and I lost everything in my two shops. We are waiting for the authorities to come to our aid, because we don’t know what to do now”, Abubakar Siddique, a victim pleaded.
Investigations to establish the exact cause of the fire has commenced by the Ghana National Fire Service, but preliminary report points to electrical fault.
By Ibrahim Abubakar
