Online Reporter
Sikhumbuzo Moyo, [email protected]
POLICE forensic experts have been deployed from Harare to probe yesterday’s fire incident in Bulawayo that razed a popular restaurant in Bulawayo city centre, Fairy Cafe, which is suspected to be a possible case of arson.
The fire, discovered in the early hours of yesterday, has left 55 employees jobless as authorities continue searching for answers on the exact cause of the fire that took the Bulawayo Fire Brigade over an hour to extinguish.
The inferno had already caused considerable destruction of property.
Nothing was salvaged from the main premises, with the Fire Brigade nevertheless saving two fully stocked storerooms situated at the back.
“We are treating this property fire as arson and that position will only change from conclusive investigation by a team of forensic experts who have already been deployed from Harare,” said a police source.
It has since emerged that an alarm was triggered at the premises at 2.20AM and a response team from a private security company attended to it but could not find anything amiss.
“After just over an hour following the alarm alert, those ladies who operate at night saw some smoke and flames coming out of the premises’ roof, sending them into panic mode.
“When we eventually arrived at the scene our suspicions were that perhaps gas cylinders had exploded but that was not the case,” said an employee, speaking on condition of anonymity.
Management indicated that preliminary observations suggest the blaze was not linked to electrical or gas faults, as previously suspected but emphasised that they will wait for the outcome of the investigations before making further comment.
The facility was fully insured with a leading insurance company but the incident has left management and staff naturally devastated, company officials said.
“Earlier this morning (yesterday), Fairy Cafe Bulawayo was severely damaged by a fire, resulting in the loss of the premises and its contents.
“This is a heartbreaking moment for the Fairy family, our team and our valued customers who have supported the Bulawayo branch. However, our spirit remains strong, and we are already working on the path forward,” read part of the statement from management.
Bulawayo Chief Fire Officer, Mr Mhlangano Moyo, said investigations to establish the cause of the fire were ongoing and they were not ruling out anything, including sabotage.
He said other investigative agencies have come on board.
Mr Moyo said the fire caused extensive damage, adding that firefighters attended the scene promptly and were able to prevent the flames from spreading to neighbouring buildings.
“The fire started in the night and was seen at around 3 or 4AM, but we managed to contain it. The fire was reported very late around 04:00Hrs,” he said.
“Although the brigade responded well the fire was found on top of the roof emanating from the kitchen side spreading to the entire building,” said Mr Moyo.
Bulawayo police spokesperson Inspector Nomalanga Msebele said police received a fire incident report in the city centre and investigations were in progress.
“We don’t want to speculate anything at the moment as we are not fire experts. We shall allow the experts to go through their investigations first,” said Insp Msebele.
From the early morning to around 2PM yesterday, police had sealed off a section of Fife Street between 13th and 14th Avenues to allow for preliminary investigations.
