Fire razes Ajimobi’s widow Grandex stores in Ibadan

Wale Oyewale, Ibadan

There was confusion at the Bodija area of Ibadan on Sunday as fire gutted Grandex, a supermarket belonging to Florence, widow of the former Oyo State governor, the late Abiola Ajimobi.

It was gathered that the inferno that started around 3 pm from the back office of the supermarket later spread to the main store.

Men of the Oyo State Fire Service battled the fire for hours before it was put out.

Those whose vehicles were parked in the vicinity were seen scrambling to move them away.

A part of the grocery and household store was, however, damaged while lots of wares were recovered from the unaffected part of the building.

An eyewitness, Bamidele Osinlowo, said, “The fire started at about 3 pm. We heard the shout of the workers, I immediately called the Oyo State Fire Service. Within 10 minutes, they arrived with a bigger truck. We moved in to join them.”

Mrs Ajimobi was said to have visited the scene to assess the level of damage at the supermarket.

Some of her aides later joined in evacuating goods from the stores with some personnel of Operation Burst on hand to repel hoodlums from looting the supermarket.

Personnel of the Federal Fire Service, who spoke with journalists under the condition of anonymity, attributed the incident to electrical sparks.