Fire destroys Zambia's biggest trading hub, City Market

Zambia’s biggest market has been on fire since the early hours of Tuesday, local media and journalists are reporting.

The City Market, located in the capital, Lusaka, is not just the country’s biggest but its busiest trading center according to the Zambia reports news portal.

Pictures being shared on social media show clouds of smoke bellowing from the facility as people look on, some snapping photos and taking videos.

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Pictures coming from the burning City Market, Zambia's biggest market, leave one wondering what will become of those poor traders. pic.twitter.com/NEzBWsOYVO

— Kennedy Gondwe (@KennedyGondwe) July 4, 2017

Even as authorities move to bring the blaze under control and to ascertain the cause of the fire, reports indicate that goods worth millions of kwacha – the Zambian currency – have gone up in flames.

The market was built a decade ago with a designated police post as well as day and night guards. It is also said to a facility that prohibits cooking and fire inside the market. That deepens the cause of the incident as investigations open into the possible causes.

Breaking News: City Market in Lusaka on Fire pic.twitter.com/9ygz9rwbb8

— Mwebantu (@Mwebantu) July 4, 2017

Photo credit: Kennedy Gondwe