A massive fire on Thursday afternoon gutted the China City Mall near the Santasi Roundabout in Kumasi, destroying goods worth millions of cedis and leaving the entire building in ruins.
The fire, which started around 4 p.m., quickly spread through the multi-storey shopping complex, one of the newest retail centres in the Ashanti regional capital. Witnesses said thick smoke billowed from the rear section of the mall before flames engulfed much of the structure.
Personnel from the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) arrived at the scene with several fire tenders and battled the blaze for hours. Regional Fire Commander ACFO Henry Giwah said the rapid spread was fuelled by the mall’s construction materials and the large quantities of combustible items inside.
“By the time our men gained access to the interior, the fire had already taken hold of multiple sections of the building,” ACFO Giwah told reporters. “Fortunately, there were no casualties. All workers and shoppers managed to evacuate safely.”
The mall housed shops selling electronics, home appliances, groceries, clothing, and household items. Traders and workers watched helplessly as their stock burned, with many counting huge losses.
Officials from the National Disaster Management Organisation (NADMO) and the Kumasi Metropolitan Assembly joined emergency teams to cordon off the area. City engineers later declared the structure unsafe and recommended that it be pulled down to prevent collapse. Heavy machinery was moved to the site Friday morning to begin demolition.
The cause of the fire has not yet been established, but fire officers say investigations are ongoing.
Thursday’s incident adds to a growing list of major commercial fires across Ghana, prompting renewed calls for stricter enforcement of fire-safety regulations in shopping complexes and public buildings.
For now, authorities say the priority is to secure the site, support affected traders, and determine how such a devastating blaze could occur in one of Kumasi’s newest malls.
