Fire gutted B.Y. Ventures soft drinks store in the Abdulkadir Abdullahi Kure Ultra Modern Market, Minna, on Thursday, January 8, 2026, destroying over N200 million worth of goods.

An eyewitness reported that the fire started at about 7.30 am, though the swift intervention of both the Niger State Fire Service and the Federal Fire Service brought the inferno under control.

The Guardian learnt that the fire was caused by overheating from a solar panel mounted on the shop’s roof.
The General Manager, B.Y Ventures, Faruq Mohammad, explained that over N200 million worth of goods were destroyed by the fire.

Faruq said,” Items in the shop include (7,000) cartons of biscuits, and (12,000) packets of soft drinks, part of which was destroyed by the fire.”

He appealed to the Niger State Government to come to their aid so as to reduce the pain of their loss.
He praised the prompt intervention of the Niger State Fire Service and the Federal Fire Service, which saved the building from further destruction, and urged them to maintain the tempo.

Earlier, the Director General of the Niger State Urban Development Board (NUDB), Abdulrahman Mohammad Chata, expressed concern over the congestion in the market and advised traders to strictly adhere to the laid-down rules and regulations.

Chata also urged traders to always seek the services of professionals while installing solar panels or electrical appliances.

The D.G had commiserated with the shop owner and called on them to always switch off their electrical appliances when not in use.

In their separate remarks, the Controller of the Niger State Fire Service, Baba Alikali, and the Controller of the Federal Fire Service, Assistant Controller Alikali Mohammad, appealed to the public to always call the fire service whenever there is a fire outbreak.

In other news, Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, last week confirmed that eight people died in the fire that engulfed the 25-storey Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) Building on Martins Street, Lagos Island, on Christmas Eve, and ordered decisive measures, including the demolition of unsafe structures in the vicinity.

The governor made the statement during an on-the-spot assessment of the fire-ravaged building, nine days after the inferno, with pockets of fire still visible at the site. He said 13 people were rescued alive from the building, while search and recovery operations had confirmed eight fatalities.

Sanwo-Olu, who described the incident as tragic and deeply painful, led members of his entourage in observing a minute of silence in honour of those who lost their lives. He attributed the outbreak of the fire to human error and stressed the need for stricter compliance with safety regulations in commercial and residential buildings across the state.