An extremely difficult-to-control fire swept through certain portion of Adum, the Central Business District (CBD) of Kumasi early Friday, March 21, 2025, destroying goods, properties, and other personal effects, worth several millions of Ghana Cedis.

The enormity of the fire and the destruction it caused, even forced President John Dramani Mahama to rush to Kumasi on Friday afternoon to personally check the destruction and also console the poor fire victims, most of whom are petty traders.

The cause of the devastating inferno is yet to be known, but eyewitness reports suggest that the fire started around 4:30 a.m. from a building near the Hello FM building before it escalated.

DO2 Peter Addai, Regional Public Relations Officer of the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS), told the media at the scene of the fire that they received information about the fire outbreak at 5:00 a.m.

Upon arriving at the fire scene, the GNFS team detailed to fight the fire requested reinforcement since the ferocity of the fire was beyond their reach.

GNFS personnel and fire tenders were drawn from offices within the greater Kumasi area and immediate locations to fight what both the GNFS and the public describe as the biggest fire disaster in the history of Kumasi.

He noted that the firefighters faced accessibility challenges in fighting the fire quickly due to a lack of space as a result of haphazard placement of temporary structures.

Also present at the fire scene to complement the firefighting efforts of the GNFS were security personnel from the military, police, immigration, prison, metro guard, and other vigilante groups.

Several hundred shops in the Akwasi Agyemang Building and a building adjacent to the Hello FM building were severely affected by the fire.

Meanwhile, about 1,000 stalls and temporary structures at the railways line market were also razed down by the devastating fire, which was brought under control around 10:00 a.m.

While counting their losses, grieving traders and shop owners expressed their utmost worry about the fire disaster but were quick to request an investigation into the unfortunate fire.

They appealed to the government to respond to their plight while anxiously waiting for the cause of the fire and the aftermath of a thorough investigation.

STORY BY Thomas Awuah Asem

Kumasi