Fire sweeps through two houses in Kitwe destroys property

Property worth millions of Kwacha has been destroyed in Kitwe’s Riverside Residential area after fire gutted two houses destroying almost everything in the house.

A check by ZANIS found the tenants at the gutted house helplessly watching the burnt items.

The fire swept through flat number 3968, along Luapula road in Riverside around 16 hours.

Brother to one of the tenants,  Shadreck Bwalya said the fire is suspected to have been caused by an electrical fault.

The burnt items include Fridges, Television sets, Computers, Sofas, and several other household goods while the house has been extensively burnt.

Meanwhile, residents in the area have blamed Nkana Water and Sewerage Company for the erratic water supply to the area as the goods could have been saved had there been water.

Another tenant Rosemary Banda added that the fire could have been quenched if there was water at the time.

Mrs Banda said residents tried to quench the fire but they run out of water as there was no running water in the area at the time.

She complained that the area only has water from 06:00 hours in the morning up to 07:00 hours and later at 18 hours in the evening to 22:00hours in the night.

She appealed on the water utility company to improve the supply of water in the area.