Thousands of onion bags have been destroyed in a fresh fire outbreak at Duhuwa village in Sokoto State, marking the third such incident within one week in the area.
The fire, which occurred on Friday, razed 324 onion storage huts, each containing about 18 bags, resulting in the loss of 5,832 bags valued at approximately N204.12 million, according to the National President of the Nigerian Onion Producers, Processors and Marketers Association, Aliyu Maitasamu Isah.
Eyewitnesses said the fire started around 2:00pm and raged for about three hours, spreading rapidly to nearby storage huts and a residential house before it was eventually contained.
The latest disaster comes days after similar incidents in Kojiyo and Dundaye villages, also in Sokoto State, where over 4,000 bags of onions were destroyed, bringing total losses in the week to over 10,000 bags.
Several farmers described the incident as devastating, with many losing their entire livelihoods. One of the victims, Bashiru Muhammadu, who lost 260 bags, said the situation had left him and his family with nothing to depend on.
The village head of Duhuwa, Magaji Salihu, confirmed that over 300 storage huts were destroyed and called for urgent government intervention to support affected farmers.
Reacting to the repeated incidents, NOPPMAN expressed concern over the pattern of fires, describing it as alarming and urging security agencies, including the DSS and police, to investigate possible causes.
The association also called on the Sokoto State Government, NEMA, and SEMA to provide urgent assistance, warning that total losses in one week have now reached about N500 million.
However, the Sokoto State Emergency Management Agency said it was yet to receive an official report on the incident, while NEMA confirmed it had also not been formally notified.
