Traders at Kibuye Market in Kisumu are counting losses running into millions of shillings after a fire broke out at the market. Faith Matete 
Traders at Kibuye Market in Kisumu are counting losses running into millions of shillings after a fire broke out at the market. Faith Matete Traders at Kibuye Market in Kisumu are counting losses running into millions of shillings after a fire broke out at the market on Monday night, destroying shops and merchandise.
The blaze reduced property, household goods and business stock to ashes, leaving traders with little to salvage as they returned to the market on Tuesday morning to assess the damage.
Jairus Ndubi said he had lost goods worth about Sh2 million, which he had been preparing to transport to customers outside Kisumu.
“The goods I had were worth about Sh2 million. I was supposed to pack them and send them out, but now there is nothing to pack. Everything has been reduced to dust,” Ndubi said.
He said the loss had left him struggling to figure out how to restart his business. “I have not been able to salvage anything. It is difficult and it is very painful for me,” he said.
For Sakina Otieno, the fire has not only wiped out her business but also left her worried about how she will support her children.
She said refrigerators, fans, electric irons and other household and business items were all destroyed in the inferno.
“All those things, the fridges, fans, irons and everything else were burnt to ashes. I have been left with nothing,” Otieno said.
Otieno said she has school-going children, including a Grade Seven pupil and another in college, and was already facing financial pressure over school fees.
“I have young children who are supposed to go to school and school fees are due. I have nowhere to turn to. I have been affected so badly that I do not even know where to start,” she said.
She recalled desperately trying to save her belongings as the fire spread through the market but was unable to rescue anything.
“I ran to the market at night hoping to save my things, but I could not save anything. Please help me. I have been left with nothing except what I am wearing,” she said.
Another trader, Bernard Okoth, estimated that traders had collectively lost goods worth about Sh30 million.
“We have incurred losses estimated at around Sh30 million. If you look at what people have lost at this place, it is a huge amount,” Okoth said.
Okoth called on both the county and national governments to intervene and support the affected traders as they seek to rebuild their businesses.
“My appeal goes to the county government and the national government at large. We want governments that care about traders,” he said.
He also called for a thorough investigation into the cause of the fire, saying similar incidents have occurred without the circumstances being properly established.
“These incidents normally happen and there are never proper investigations. We urge the government to conduct thorough investigations to establish what caused this fire,” Okoth said.
He questioned why authorities would be unable to investigate a disaster that had caused traders massive losses.
“We cannot simply be told that the government cannot investigate this fire incident. We need to know what caused it and whether there was anything that could have been done to prevent it,” he said.
The traders now face the difficult task of rebuilding their livelihoods after the fire destroyed their stock, equipment and other belongings.
For many, the immediate concern is how to restart businesses that were their main source of income while meeting basic family needs, including school fees.
