How EBSU student lost over N6m in fire accident

 

Mr Vincent Onyekachi Nwigbakpor, a 300 level students of Law Department in Ebonyi State University, Abakaliki has narrated how he lost over six million Naira (N6m) in a fire accident that burnt his shop into ashes at Nwezenyi Junction in Izzi Local Government Area of Ebonyi State.

Nwigbakpor told our newsman who visited the the scene, that the incident took place 'on last Thursday 29th April, 2021, by hour of 1 a.m.' 

He said that, someone on phone call, informed him of the fire accident.

He added that 'the incident was discovered by the vigilante group' but that was when the whole goods in the shop have been burnt by fire.'

The boy is a sole owner of the shop, named 'Onyibe Communications', and its location is along Ogoja Road at Nwezenyi Junction in Izzi LGA.

 He is a dealer on phones, phone accessories, recharged cards, POS services, phone charging, laptops for downloading of musics, movies and other communication services with facilitating machines such as generators, cupboards, speakers, among others in the shop.

The business according to him, was started over 9years now and has been only means of raising his school fees and feeding his siblings who used to assist him in making sales in the shop since his father passed on.

"Since 2009, this is a shop that serves as a father and a mother to make a living. It's from this shop that I started my school, and currently, I am a 300 level law student of Ebonyi State University.

"If I should calculate all this fire accident has burnt into ashes, it is not less than six million Naira.

"Nothing even a pin is saved from this shop. In fact, this incident has injected a very serious catastrophe into my life; and I have nobody to meet now to assist me out of this condition. I only rely on God to intervene. I call the whole world to be of help to me no matter how small it is," Nwigbakpor stated.

He attributed the cause of the fire outbreak to electric explosion.

He added the town's vigilante who was on operation at the mid-night of the day got known of the incident when the whole wares have been  burnt down, but succeeded quenching the fire to avoid spreading to another shops in the area.

Speaking with his Manager in charge of the shop, Mr Clement Uraku, said that the change over light was on generator setting before leaving for home that fateful day.

He said that the money gotten from sales on the day was equally dropped in the shop.

Uraku also noted that the wares supplied, including raw money of over N600, 000 in the shop were all gutted into ashes by the fire incident.

"Honestly, no pin was saved from this shop, and calculating the whole damages in this shop are not less than N6m. The raw cash in this shop for the POS services was not less than N600,000. I have never had this kind of ugly experience since I began working with him, imagine all these have been burnt by fire." he said.

Also, Chief Pius Ola, the village head of Nwezenyi, expressed sadness over the incident as he explained that he got the information from the leaders of the town's vigilante group.

He said, it was through the intervention of the vigilante group made the fire outbreak not affected with other shops within the area.

He described the victim, Mr Vincent Onyekachi Nwigbakpor as an industrious youth, who started from his childhood struggling for survival especially after the death of his father.


He noted that Nwigbakpor's shop had grown larger, and was favourably competing with others doing well in their businesses in the town even though he is still undergraduate.


He therefore, consoled the victim, and as well called a high spirited individuals, groups, organisations and governments to come for his assistance.