No fewer than 19 shops and one mosque were destroyed in a fire outbreak at Kasuwar Rimi Market in Kano in the early hours of Wednesday.

The State Fire Service confirmed the incident through a statement issued by its Public Relations Officer, Alhaji Saminu Abdullahi.

According to Abdullahi, the service received a distress call from one Ahmad Tijjani at about 01:46 a.m, alerting them of the fire outbreak at the market.

The Fire Service personnel and fire-fighting vehicle were immediately deployed to the scene at about 01:55 a.m. to put out the fire.

“14 permanent shops, five temporary ones, and one mosque were completely razed by the inferno,” said Abdullahi, adding that no life was lost and no one was injured in the incident.

The cause of the fire is still under investigation, according to Abdullahi.

While reacting to the incident, some traders expressed their sadness and called on the government to come to their aid.

One of the affected traders, Ibrahim Abdullahi, said: “I have lost everything in my shop to the fire outbreak.

“I appeal to the government and well-meaning individuals to come to our aid as we struggle to recover from this huge loss.”

Another trader, Maryam Ibrahim, said: “It is a very sad day for us. We have lost everything we have worked hard for over the years. We need the government to help us get back on our feet”.

The Kano State Government has promised to investigate the incident and provide assistance to the affected traders.