An early-morning fire outbreak on Monday razed a residential building with attached shops at No. 32 Orumba Street, Okpoko, in Ogbaru Local Government Area of Anambra State, destroying at least 28 apartments.
The fire reportedly broke out around 2 a.m. in one of the apartments and quickly spread to adjoining rooms before engulfing the shops on the premises. Property worth several millions of naira was lost in the inferno.
Although no lives were lost, the incident sparked panic as residents rushed to salvage what they could from the burning building.
The fire was eventually brought under control with the support of officers from the Okpoko Police Division, who provided security while residents battled the flames.
The cause of the fire has not been officially confirmed, but preliminary findings point to a possible power surge following the restoration of electricity supply.
Speaking at the scene, the landlord, Kingsley Oguejiofor, said the fire started shortly after power was restored at about 2 a.m.
“I was woken up by tenants shouting and calling for help. By the time I came out, the building was already on fire,” he said.
“Despite efforts to stop it, nothing could be saved because the fire spread very fast and reduced the building to ashes.”
Affected shop owners said they received distress calls in the early hours of the morning but arrived to find the entire building already destroyed.
One of the victims, identified as Uzor, lamented the losses, saying, “Before we got there, the whole place was already on fire, making it impossible to save anything.
“Goods worth several millions of naira were destroyed. It is even more painful because we had just restocked at the beginning of the year.”
Police officers led by the Divisional Police Officer of Okpoko Division, CSP Ewelu Owai, alongside community leaders, were present to maintain order and assess the extent of the damage.
The incident comes barely months after a similar fire outbreak in November 2025, when several shops were destroyed in a three-storey commercial building at Nodu Market, behind Juhel Pharmaceutical Company, in Awka South Local Government Area.
That fire was brought under control by the Anambra State Fire Service, with no casualties recorded.
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