Saturday, 13 February 2010 00:36 Kyaw Kha and Nyein Chan
Chiang Mai and Dhaka (Mizzima) - Thingangyun Market, one of the biggest in Rangoon, was gutted by fire this evening, according to the Rangoon Fire Department and local residents.
The entire market was reportedly consumed by the flames, which started at around 7:30 p.m. and raged for three hours.
“Thingangyun Market is gone. From Rangoon’s central fire department we sent four fire engines and there were more than fifty fire fighting vehicles sent from different townships,” said a firefighter with the Rangoon Fire Department.
“Some houses that are nearby the market were also destroyed in the fire. There were at least five gold jewelry shops in the market, and many clothes and garment shops as well. The loss is great,” said a duty officer of the Union Solidarity and Development Association stationed nearby Thingangyun Market.
A local resident told Mizzima by telephone that the whole township is in the dark as electricity has been cut.
Authorities could not immediately confirm the cause of fire that destroyed the market, which was closed on the occasion of Burma’s 63rd Union Day.
A Buddhist monk who witnessed the fire told Mizzima that roads around the area were blocked owing to the large crowds drawn to the blaze.
Saturday, February 13, 2010
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