Onion farmers in Sokoto State have suffered heavy losses after a fire outbreak destroyed no fewer than 2,275 bags of onions in Kojiyo village, Goronyo Local Government Area, with damages estimated at N56.8 million.
The fire, which razed about 65 traditional onion storage huts, wiped out a major source of livelihood for many residents of the farming community.
Eyewitnesses who spoke to Dailytrust said the inferno started around 2 p.m. on Friday and raged for nearly seven hours before it was eventually brought under control. No lives were lost, but villagers were left counting significant economic losses.
Aliyu Isah Maitasamu, The National President of the Nigerian Onion Producers, Processors and Marketers Association of Nigeria, said each affected storage hut contained an average of 35 bags of onions.
He explained that the 2,275 bags destroyed were valued at about N25,000 each in the local market, putting the total estimated loss at N56.8 million.
Maitasamu said the association had repeatedly warned farmers against activities capable of causing fire outbreaks around storage facilities, especially because the huts are made with highly flammable materials such as dry grass and stalks.
He added that the exact cause of the fire had yet to be determined.
“We are still investigating the incident to determine the cause of the fire,” he said.
He, however, dismissed fears of an immediate rise in onion prices, noting that the quantity lost was not enough to significantly affect the market.
One of the affected farmers, Abdullahi S. Rima, said he lost about 210 bags.
“It is a huge loss for me. Everything I stored there has been burnt,” he lamented.
Another farmer, Nura Arzika Magaji, who reportedly lost 70 bags, said the disaster had left his family in hardship.
“We usually sell gradually to cater for our families, but now everything is gone. We currently don’t have what to eat,” he said.
The Village Head of Kojiyo, Muhammadu Sani Sarkin Rima, described the incident as devastating for many households and appealed for urgent government support.
Maitasamu also called on the Sokoto State Emergency Management Agency and the National Emergency Management Agency to provide relief materials and farming support to affected farmers.
Meanwhile, Abdullahi Ghani, the Public Relations Officer of SEMA, said the agency had yet to receive an official report but assured that an assessment would be carried out once notified.
