The fire that gutted several stores in Seeb Souq in the wee hours recently caused enormous financial losses to businesses, even though there were no fatalities due to the incident.
According to some business owners, goods worth thousands of Omani rials were destroyed.
One of the store owners told the Observer that they had started storing goods to be sold during Ramadhan, starting in March, and the Eid Al Fitr in the following month. Around 17 of the 20 stores affected by the fire were fully damaged, which prompted officials from the Muscat Municipality to visit the place and take stock of the situation.
These small-time businessmen are just not sure how they can make up for the losses in a short period. “Apart from the losses, we do not have funds to restock our goods before the peak shopping season. After Eid Al Fitr, summer sets in, which is also the beginning of the long lean business season at souqs,” he said.
Human casualties were avoided due to the swift action by the Civil Defence and Ambulance Authority (CDAA) fighters and the fact that it happened in the wee hours,” an eyewitness said.
A resident of the area said that dilapidated buildings, lack of periodical auditing of security and safety requirements, illegal electrical connections and other issues lead to such disasters.
He said concerned authorities and store owners must ensure timely maintenance of installations.
CDAA had reported a similar incident in a commercial store in Dhofar earlier in January.
Also, a popular store was fully gutted after a fire broke out in a building in the Wilayat of Muttrah in 2022. The store never reopened after the incident.
CDAA has been calling on institutions and companies to adhere to safety requirements in commercial shops to avoid risks.
According to CDAA, industrial and commercial facilities not adhering to civil protection requirements cause fires to break out, resulting in property damages and material losses.
The reasons include failure to comply with regular maintenance of the facility’s alarm and firefighting systems, use of unstable and fire-resistant materials, storing dangerous materials or materials in violation of those permitted by the concerned authorities and not ensuring the validity of the electrical connections inside the building.
The capital Muscat topped the list of fire incidents in the country in 2022 with 1,307 cases, which is 31.2 per cent of the total incidents reported in the country.
According to the National Centre for Statistics and Information (NCSI), 4,186 cases were reported in the country in 2022, of which 949 were in North Al Batinah, 367 in South Al Batinah, 435 in Al Dakhiliyah and 349 in Dhofar governorate among others.
Incidents reported from household facilities were 32.1 per cent, transportation (22.2 per cent), residues (20 per cent), agriculture (9.8 per cent), and companies and enterprises (7.2 per cent.)
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