Fire Renders Couple Homeless In Cape Coast
A wooden structure serving as the home of a couple at Gegem near the Cape Coast Castle in the Central Region has been razed by fire, leaving them homeless. The incident occurred on Friday during a downpour at a time the couple had left home for work.
Personal belongings, including items being stored for an upcoming naming ceremony, amounting to about GHC2,500 were all destroyed by the fire.
According to officials of the Ghana National Fire Service, preliminary investigations have revealed the fire was started by a spark from an inferior electrical cable that was used in connecting electricity into the room from a nearby house.
An eyewitness, Lydia Azalu, told Kwame Kakraba she was in the house harvesting rainwater when suddenly the whole house was engulfed in thick smoke.
She said she quickly raised an alarm and people rushed to the house to help extinguish the fire. Roger Bruce, Operations Officer of the Cape Coast Metro Fire Station, said initial investigations revealed the electrical wires used in connecting electricity into the room was inferior, adding parts of the wires which were joined were not sello taped.
“They were not sello-taped, causing sparks between two wires which ignited and caused the fire,” he said. He advised people to use the services of qualified electricians and ECG officials whenever they want to connect electricity. He urged everyone to make sure all appliances and switches are off before leaving their homes.
Story By: Kwame -Kakraba
