A late-night fire on Thursday gutted the female hostel annex of Gombe State University, destroying students’ belongings but leaving no casualties.

An eyewitness said the fire, which started around 9:00 pm, was triggered by a cooking gas explosion after a student reportedly left food unattended on a lit gas cylinder.

The blaze caused panic among residents of the hostel but was eventually brought under control before spreading further. Several students, however, lost personal effects and valuables to the incident.

Confirming the development, the university’s Public Relations Officer, Hadu Naphtali Ligari, said: “The University Management is currently assessing the cause and extent of the incident. A comprehensive statement will be issued in due course.”

He added that normalcy has since been restored while investigations continue.