By AMEN GAJIRA

No fewer than five building materials shops were razed by fire following a gas explosion in Kubwa, Bwari Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory, on Sunday.

An eyewitness said the incident occurred after a car lost control and crashed into a gas vendor’s shop, triggering the explosion.

“The man was driving his family to church when he lost control after his car developed brake failure and ran into the gas vendor’s shop, causing the explosion.

“He was actually driving at high speed before attempting to slow down when the brakes failed,” the eyewitness said.

An official of the Federal Fire Service, Kubwa Command, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said firefighters arrived at the scene shortly after receiving a distress call.

“The fire started at about 6:12 a.m. and we received the call at 6:20 a.m. Within five minutes, we were at the scene.

“As you can see, we deployed up to five trucks to extinguish the fire and bring the situation under control,” he said.

He added that the coordinated response prevented the fire from spreading to other nearby buildings and businesses.

A visit to the scene by a News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) correspondent showed smouldering remains and visible traces of the destruction.

NAN reports that personnel of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) and the Police were also at the scene.

Although no casualties had been reported as of the time of filing this report, the incident caused significant damage to property.

NAN also reports that volunteers were also said to have joined efforts to salvage property and prevent the fire from spreading to other shops.

Some residents of Kubwa described the incident as unfortunate and commended the Federal Fire Service for its prompt response in containing the fire. (NAN)