A massive fire swept through the Nadowli Main Market yesterday afternoon, February 7, 2026, destroying stalls and merchandise beyond recognition.
The inferno, which reportedly began around 2:00 PM, has left local traders in despair and raised serious questions regarding the town’s emergency water infrastructure.
The Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS) arrived on the scene promptly to combat the blaze. However, their efforts were soon hampered when the fire tender exhausted its water supply. In a frustrating turn of events, firefighters were unable to refill at the town’s main hydrant, as the Water Board management allegedly failed to provide immediate access to the facility.
In a desperate bid to save the market, a District Resilient Infrastructure Project (DRIP) water tanker was deployed to draw water from a nearby dam. Despite these efforts, technical compatibility issues prevented the water from being transferred into the fire tender, rendering the backup plan ineffective.
The District Chief Executive (DCE) for Nadowli-Kaleo, Hon. Mary Haruna, arrived shortly after to assess the magnitude of the crisis. Facing a worsening situation and a dry fire tender, she took the lead in mobilising residents.
In a show of community resilience, citizens formed a “bucket brigade,” using buckets and basins to manually battle the flames. This grassroots effort held the fire at bay until the Water Board finally granted the GNFS access to the hydrant, allowing firefighters to quench the blaze officially.
The fire primarily consumed locally constructed stalls, many of which were reduced to ashes within minutes. Traders who rushed to the scene could only watch in agony as their livelihoods vanished.
Mwine Paschal of the Village Boy TV reports that an eyewitnesses suggest the fire was accidental, explaining that a woman, who had finished constructing a new stall at the market, was burning refuse nearby. The small fire quickly spiralled out of control, fueled by the dry materials of the market structures and the afternoon heat.
