A fire broke out on Sunday at Footbridge Mall, a newly constructed shopping mall located at the corner of Julius Nyerere Way and Speke Avenue, opposite Joina City Mall in Harare.
Cause of the Fire Still Unknown
The cause of the fire remains unknown at this time, although initial reports suggest that it originated from the footbridge leading to Joina City Mall and subsequently spread to a nearby building.
Fortunately, no lives were lost as a result of the fire, although the exact extent of the property damage is currently unknown.
According to some accounts, the fire was allegedly started by street children engaged in a territorial dispute. However, they quickly lost control of the flames which then spread to the adjacent shopping mall.
In response to the incident, two fire trucks were promptly dispatched to the scene after receiving alerts through social media and phone calls. Harare Mayor Jacob Mafume was personally present at the site and provided an update once the flames were doused.
Mayor Mafume reported that the fire had caused significant damage to equipment and furniture on two floors of the building before the Harare Fire Brigade managed to bring it under control after several hours of effort.
“Unfortunately equipment and furniture on two floors had burnt down. But they managed to contain the fire from spreading to other buildings,” Mayor Jacob Mafume explained in a video doing the rounds on X (formerly Twitter).
Also Read: UZ Physics Department Building Devoured by Flames: Shocking Video Footage Emerges
Appeal for Dedicated Emergency Line
Additionally, he appealed to mobile service providers to establish a dedicated emergency line, as the existing numbers are excessively long and difficult for people to remember.
“We have always maintained that the networks need to give us a dedicated line for us to get calls quickly. The numbers are too long and people do not know them. There is need of a service line like 911,” he added.
Mayor Mafume expressed gratitude to the Harare Fire Brigade and citizens for their swift response and assistance in extinguishing the fire. He acknowledged the contribution of the Harare Emergency group, which provided 200,000 litres of water, in a post shared on X.
Our firefighters responded to a fire in the CBD last night.They managed to stop the fire after some hours .The cause of fire is not known.The assistance from the Harare Emergency group was invaluable.They provided 200000 ltrs of water .No life was lost.@daddyhope @bbmhlanga pic.twitter.com/HuYLeYJ87h
— Mayor of Harare, Jacob Mafume (@JMafume) January 29, 2024-iharar
