No fewer than 300 shops worth over N300 million were destroyed following a fire outbreak at Sabon Gari Market in Sabongari area of Zaria in Kaduna State on Saturday.

The fire, which lasted for over seven hours, started at about 11:30 on Friday night and continued till the early morning of Saturday before it was put out by men of the fire service and sympathisers.

Although the cause of the fire incident was yet to be ascertained, some traders at the market said it could be an electric fault.

An eye witness account confirmed the timing of the Kaduna fire which lasted till the early hours of Saturday, destroying the roof and goods belonging to the traders.

The witness identified as Musa Garba said that the fire affected mainly the provision and butchers’ sections.

He appealed to the Kaduna State Government, State Emergency Management Agency and the National Emergency Management Agency to come to the aid of the affected traders.

When contacted, the Spokesman for the Kaduna State Governor, Ahmed Maiyaki, said that Governor Muktar Yero sympathised with the affected traders at the market.

He added that the Governor would visit the market to ascertain the level of destruction by the fire incident.

•Sourced from Channels TV.