Hundreds of vendors in Nakivubo Park yard market commonly known as Owino in Kampala central business district are counting losses after their merchandise was gutted by fire in the wee hours of this morning.
The fire is believed to have started at around 4:30am on Wednesday morning reducing merchandise worth millions of shillings to ashes. Only a handful of traders managed to save their merchandise.
The fire could not have happened at a worse time as the festive season begins with Christmas Day three weeks away.
Police has been heavily deployed in the area with many roads leading to the Parkyard Market sealed off. Traffic is heavier than usual downtown Kampala as a result.
By the time of filing this report, the Police fire brigade was still battling the huge flames of fire. This is the third time Park yard market has burnt within a space of only three years. The same market was gutted by fire in 2009 and 2011.
The market occupies land that belongs to Nakivuubo Stadium, opposite the New Taxi Park. The land was originally meant to be a parking yard for vehicles of sports fans coming to the stadium.
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