Fire razes Owerri airport twice in one year

For the second time in less than a year, a fire outbreak has been reported at the Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport, Owerri.

The cause of the fire was unknown but the General Manager, Corporate Affairs, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Mrs Henrietta Yakubu, described it as a bush fire.

According to Yakubu, firefighters were working to control the spread of the fire.

She said the fire did not affect flight operations, stressing that authority would like to appeal to host communities around airports to please desist from burning bushes around the airports as this act is capable of jeopardizing safety of flight operations because of the prevailing weather condition in the country.

In April last year, a section of the Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport, Owerri, Imo State, was razed by fire, forcing passengers to flee for safety.

The cause of the inferno, which lasted for over 30 minutes, was not immediately ascertained, but it was learnt that the fire started around 2:00 p.m. at the arrival section of the airport, which was under renovation.

Though no life was lost, it took spirited efforts by men of the fire service and airport workers to put out the blaze.