A major fire tore through Mogadishu’s Bakara Market on Tuesday, destroying multiple shops near the Cabdalla Shideeye junction and wiping out the stock and property of dozens of traders, witnesses said.
The blaze broke out inside the market and quickly spread across several business sections before firefighters from the Banadir Regional Administration arrived to bring it under control.
The fire is the latest in a long line of destructive blazes to strike Bakara, Somalia’s largest and busiest commercial hub, where thousands of traders and their families depend on daily business for their livelihoods.
Repeated incidents at the market have raised concerns over fire safety standards and the vulnerability of the densely packed trading area, though no official cause has yet been established for Tuesday’s fire.
Witnesses said the fire started inside the market before spreading rapidly to nearby business premises, engulfing shops and stalls in flames.
Firefighters from the Banadir Regional Administration reached the scene quickly, working to douse the flames and stop them from reaching other sections of the sprawling market.
One trader whose shop was destroyed said he had lost everything he relied on for his livelihood.
“My property has burned down. My business used to support many families, and now I have nothing left,” he said, describing the loss of the business that supported several families.
No official statement has been issued on the cause of the fire or the full scale of the financial losses.
Bakara Market has a long history of fires, some caused by electrical faults and others linked to explosions or militant attacks, with previous blazes destroying entire sections of the market and displacing traders for months.
The market remains the economic heart of Mogadishu, hosting thousands of shops selling everything from food and clothing to electronics and household goods, making any disruption there keenly felt across the capital’s economy.
