Businesses Closed After Nausori Fire
Five fire trucks, including from Fiji Airports Limited, were used to put out the massive blaze.
Carpenters Hardware, MH Homemaker, Western Union and shops in Sun Arcade closed for business.
Five fire trucks, including a fire team from Fiji Airports Limited at Nausori International Airport, were used to put out a fire in Nausori Town on Tuesday night.
The massive fire, which lit up the developing town centre, has left a number of shops now closed for business.
Carpenters Hardware, MH Homemaker, Western Union, Sky Glory, Tulja Jewellers, Top Taste Woot Key Restaurant, and six other shops in Sun Arcade were destroyed in the fire. The shops were located along Nausori Town’s main street.
A Police officer keeps watch at the fire scene in Nausori Town on April 17, 2018. Photo: Ronald Kumar
The Max Val-U Supermarket, which is located next to the MH Homemaker and Carpenters Hardware, is also closed for business until further notice.
The National Fire Authority (NFA) and the Fiji Police Force responded to the fire calls. AFL fire trucks at Nausori International Airport had received a call for assistance from the NFA at around 11.20pm.
A statement from NFA said the highly flammable contents inside the MH Homemaker building resulted in the fire spreading quickly to the adjacent Carpenters Hardware and the neighbouring businesses located in the Sun Arcade building.
NFA said the fire team bravely fought the blaze and managed to stop it from spreading to the Carpenters Timber Yard and Max Val-u Supermarket, the M Chandra Industries Joinery yard located adjacent to Carpenters Hardware, a Vodafone retail outlet and the BSP Bank located further down the town’s main street.
Ashmeeta Prasad, the manager of Nav’s IT Solutions, which was located in Sun Arcade, said she received a call from a friend at around 11pm on Tuesday alerting her about the fire.
“When I received the call, I asked my husband to attend the incident,” Ms Prasad said.
“By the time my husband reached the town, he saw the buildings, including the arcade, up in flames.”
She said they had lost around $120,000 worth of equipment and stock in the fire. The business employs six people and they were informed about the fire on Tuesday. They have also been told to stay home until further notice.
Carpenters Fiji Limited director retail and marketing Kuna Sabaratnam said they have a forensic team from overseas who are investigating the recent fires. He said they would issue a statement once completed.
Edited by Naisa Koroi
Feedback: ashna.kumar@fijisun.com.fj
