Fire guts another Malawi market

Property worth millions of Kwacha is estimated to have been lost when the Mbayani market in Malawi’s commercial capital, Blantyre, went up in flames during the night of Sunday September 29.

Mbayani market went up in flames Sunday night, reducing the shops to mere smouldering rubble.

The cause of the fire, claimed to have started around 8pm, is yet to be  established.

No injuries were reported save for traders who were shocked upon seeing the ashes that had been their merchandise. Vendors suspect the fire originated from some restaurant stalls in the market.

The incident follows another recently where Tsoka Flea Market and Mzuzu market were also destroyed. Property estimated at K1.2 billion was destroyed in the fires that occurred at Mzuzu and Tsoka markets.

President Peter Peter Mutharika instituted a ministerial committee to look into the occurrences and come up with lasting solutions to the problem.