An early-morning fire has destroyed nine shops at the Nigerian Railway shopping complex near Aleshinloye Market in Ibadan South-West Local Government Area of Oyo State.
The incident, which occurred on Saturday, reportedly destroyed merchandise, household goods and other valuables worth millions of naira.
The fire was said to have started around 5am, with traders only becoming aware of the situation after residents in the area raised the alarm around 6am.
One of the affected traders, Busari Olayemi, said his interior decoration business suffered significant losses in the incident.
Olayemi, who runs the business with Adebola Adeniyi, said, “The fire destroyed products worth about N21 million, including window blinds, curtain fabrics, industrial sewing machines and other equipment.
“What happened here destroyed a lot of things. Our customers’ fabrics were burnt; you can see them over there. Our industrial sewing machines and tools were burnt right there,” one of the affected shop owners lamented.
The Chairman of the Oyo State Fire Services Agency and Special Adviser to Governor Seyi Makinde on Fire Reform, Moroof Akinwande, confirmed the outbreak in a statement issued on Saturday.
Akinwande said the agency received the distress call at 5:58am and immediately dispatched firefighters to the location.
He said, “The fire incident was reported at exactly 05:58 am through a telephone call from Taofeek, who alerted the agency to a fire outbreak at shops within the complex.
“The firefighting crew, led by Chief Fire Superintendent Adesina, promptly mobilised to the scene. Upon arrival, the crew discovered that nine locked-up shops, out of several shops within the complex, were engulfed in flames, with thick smoke billowing from the affected premises.
“The crew immediately commenced firefighting operations and called for reinforcement. A second fire truck with a 10,000-litre water capacity was subsequently deployed to the scene.
“Through the combined efforts of the firefighting crews, the fire was brought under control and completely extinguished within a short period, thereby preventing its spread to adjoining shops and properties.
“No casualty was recorded. Preliminary investigation revealed that the fire was suspected to have been caused by an electrical surge, which ignited combustible materials within the affected shops,” he said.
The fire service chief urged residents to be more cautious and take steps to prevent similar incidents.
Aleshinloye Market has previously experienced a major fire outbreak. More than 40 shops were reportedly destroyed there on March 11, 2025, with the incident occurring around 10:15pm.
The traders were left counting their losses after the previous fire, which was reported the following morning.
