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A huge fire swept through Ghana’s Kantamanto used clothing market late Wednesday, destroying over 100 shops and causing thousands of dollars in damage, according to media reports.
The market in the Ghanaian capital of Accra is a critical part of the local informal economy and an important hub for the global trade in secondhand clothes, many exported from major fashion markets in China, the US and Europe. Much of it has now been destroyed, according to reports.
“This is devastating,” Alex King Nartey, a spokesperson for The Ghana National Fire Service told AFP. “We’ve not recorded severe casualties, but the economic loss is enormous.”
Market leadership estimates around 8,000 people have been affected so far and 10 of the 13 market sections have sustained catastrophic damage, according to nonprofit The Or Foundation, which operates in Kantamanto. The organisation estimates over 60 percent of the retailer side of the market has been destroyed.
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Nartey told the AFP that preliminary investigations suggest the fire may have been caused by faulty electrical connections, though the fire service has not ruled out arson. Efforts to extinguish the blaze are expected to continue into Friday.
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