Fire razes over N3 billion leather products and machines in Aba

Late Saturday night fire has gutted leather products, raw materials and machines estimated at over N3 billion in Aba, Abia State.

The fire affected over 30 shops at the Mansion Zone block of Powerline Leather Products Industrial Cluster.

The Chairman of the affected block in the industrial cluster, Ugochukwu Nwachukwu, says more than 500 workers were working in the affected shops.

Mrs Nwanchukwu also says though the Abia Fire Service arrived from Umuahia about an hour after the fire started, their efforts helped to douse the inferno.

A former Chairman of the Omenka Shoemakers Association, Powerline Zone, Goodluck Mmeri, expressed disgust that miscreants capitalised on the situation to steal some of the materials and machines.