Blaze at Somaliland Market Injures Dozens of People, Destroys Hundreds of Businesses - Photo, Video
© AP Photo / Brian Inganga
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It presently remains unclear what prompted the Friday blaze to break out as officials continue to probe the incident. The fire, which brought so much destruction to the local market, has since been contained.
At least two dozen people were injured and hundreds of businesses were destroyed in a massive fire that ripped through the Waheen market in Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland, local officials said.
This market accommodated about 2,000 shops and was accounted for up to 50% of the city's economy, the local chamber of commerce said.
The cause of the fire, which started on Friday and was contained early on Saturday, is yet unknown.
Photos and videos of the devastating blaze have been shared on social media.
#Hargeisa fire tragedy is truly devastating. My home city is burning before us😭😭😭
— #Somaliland30 (@somaliland_30) April 2, 2022
pic.twitter.com/EXHGdmibpt
We need international rescue team, Hargeysa is on fire, this is beyond our control #Somaliland pic.twitter.com/veYFtY55hU
— Ayan Mahamoud MBE (@Gobannimo) April 1, 2022
A huge fire has broken out in Hargeisa, the capital of Somaliland. The fire engulfed Somaliland's largest market,#Waheen. The fire lasted for consecutive fourteen hours. May God change the good for the merchants whose property was burnt down in the main market of Waheen. pic.twitter.com/4OxEUo1lK4
— Khaled H. Ragueh (@KhRageh4) April 2, 2022
Somaliland's president Muse Bihi Abdi said the government would allocate $1 million to address the aftermath of the blaze. Somaliland is a breakaway republic of Somalia, in east Africa, which self-declared its independence in 1991.
