Power Surge Destroys Trader Goods Worth Over N1m, Other Valuables In Warri

A power surge from Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) have destroyed goods and properties of a food vendor, identifed as Mrs Roselyn Egberosu, in Warri, the commercial nerve centre of Delta state.

BIGPEN Online understands that the food vendor on Thursday night, lost over N400, 000, her entire valuables including her self-contain apartment to a fire allegedly caused by a power surge from BEDC.

It was gathered that the building went in flame few minutes around 8:00p.m at Warri – Sapele road, opposite Mobil Filling Station at Warri MainMarket shortly after BEDC restored electricity following a week-long power outage.

According to eyewitness, the building has residential apartments, tailoring stores and a book warehouse owned by a man simply identified as Mr Mobinco.

The Forty-four-year-old Mrs Egberosu told newsmen on Saturday that she currently left with only two wrappers and the clothes she was putting on.

Narrating her ordeal in an emotion laden voice, the mother-of-five, lamented that the restoration of electricity after the over-one-a-week power outage by BEDC has only nothing, brought sorrows and tears.

Speaking in popular Warri pidgin, she said, “Na self contain I dey stay. I be mother of five children. I dey road dey go house wey NEPA take bring the light yesterday around after eight.

“When we reach house, na my daughter open door while me dey outside dey talk with my neighbor. Na so my daughter enter house,  she come switch the change over from neutral to NEPA.

“Small time, the light com dey dim, dey full, e go dim, e go full, again.  I come dey say “aah NEPA na just now una bring light oo for the past few days e don dey go one week now we never see light as una bring am so na una won take am just now?”

“As I dey talk so, naim my daughter run come out come tell me say smoke dey the house.  As she just tell me, na im I run enter the house go comot all the fuse from the metre.

“We come dey find where the smoke for dey come.  Before two minutes, na so so fire, na so we take run comot from the house dey try dey quench the fire.

“All my neighbors run come dey quench, those wey dey call fire fighters dey call. But before fire fighters reach there, everything don burn reach ground.

“We no fit recover anything, na this dress (pointing to herself) wey dey my body na im be the only clothe wey I get  now.

“Money wey I keep for house plus the one wey person give me make I hold almost N400,000 everything burn reach ground.

“All my children clothes, their results everything burn reach ground. But the thing wey I take thank God bless say, nobody die,  nobody injure.”

Mr Mobinco, who lost his warehouse containing books and stationeries to the inferno, said he was already relaxing at home when he received a call that his warehouse was on fire, but that on getting there, his goods in the warehouse had been burnt to ashes.

Mrs Egberosu and Mr Mobinco, who are now dejected, said they lost their entire property worth millions of naira to the BEDC-induced fire

It was gathered that the Delta State Fire Fighters arrived the scene late, but were able to prevent the fire from spreading to other buildings.