Traders are counting losses after a fierce fire razed down stalls and goods of unknown value at Toi market.
For the fifth time in recent years, traders at Toi market are counting their losses after a fire razed their stalls
File image of a trader attempting to save what she can when fire swept through Toi market in Kibra, reducing several stalls to ashes and leaving traders counting losses on June 11, 2023
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An electric fault is suspected to have caused the fire at around 4am on Saturday morning with traders rushing to the famous market to save what they could.
The fire quickly spread, engulfing more stalls and leaving a trail of destruction in its wake.
"An electric fault in one of the wooden houses caused the fire early this morning," a trader impacted by the fire told a section of the press.
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The Nairobi County Government’s firefighters arrived at the scene to put out the fire.
The crowd gathered at the scene however expressed their disappointment, claiming that the team arrived hours after the fire started despite being located just a few kilometers from Toi market and at a time when roads were clear, facilitating faster movement of the team on the road.
The market has become prone to fire incidents, with traders forced to start all over again after every other incident.
Frequent fires at Toi market and traders rising from the ashes
Today’s fire incident is the fifth one in recent years and comes barely a year after an inferno razed through the famous market.
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On June 11, 2023, an electrical fault in one of the stalls resulted in a fire that swept through the market, leaving traders counting their losses.
The aftermath of a fierce fire that razed through Toi market in Kibra, reducing several stalls to ashes and leaving traders counting losses on June 11, 2023
Pulse Live Kenya
Traders and residents at the time claimed that the Nairobi County fire brigade arrived with trucks that had no water.
"How can you bring trucks that have no water, I witnessed it myself, three of them came and they told us that they need to get the water from Nairobi water," noted one trader.
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Limited access due to narrow roads and paths that crisscross the stalls that line up the market has in the past hampered efforts to put out previous fires.
Despite numerous calls for the government to put in place safety measures to avert similar tragedies after every other incident, little appears to have been done.
Promises from government officials and politicians have not amounted to much, with traders constantly at risk of losing their livelihoods.
