Over $4m losses in Khalifa mall as traders come to terms with Bakaara market blaze
Millions of dollars went up in flames Monday in a deadly inferno in Mogadishu’s largest market Bakaaro which also claimed three lives and robbed traders of their businesses some of which were still offsetting loans.
Goobjoog News and Goobjoog Business investigations have established in one of the malls, Khalifa, traders lost more than 4 million dollars while the owner had his building which housed 85 stalls reduced into ashes.
Aasho Sheikh Ibrahim who was one of the stall owners at Khalifa mall selling clothes lost stock worth $18,000. “All my stocked was lost in the fire and I even do not know where to start from now,” Aasho told Goobjoog News.
Another trader Adil Sheikh Doon who was also based at Khalifa mall said his stock of $40,000 was destroyed in the blaze which started at around 5 am local time Monday. Abdi Aato also in the same market lost stock worth $5,000.
Some of the traders said they were yet to pay off debts for stock they started the business with.
Abdullahi Mohamed, the manager of khalifa Mall told Goobjoog News the least stock in the mall was $5000 while others had stock of over half a million dollars. All of them were destroyed in the blaze which had smoke covering a section of the city.
“Khalifa mall was established in 2012, Mohamed said “And we started with a capital of $500,000.” Four major companies-Hodan, Hal-abuur, Al-Xarameyn and Al-ixsaan were running the stalls.
Our joint investigations only covered Khalifa mall. Several other shops were destroyed as well and the loses could run into more millions of dollars as traders continue counting their loses.
The market went up in flames Monday bare a month after a similar case razed down sections of the market. Other incidents of fire in Bakaaro market were in 1996, 2002, 2007 and 2009.
