Fire has gutted at least eight market stalls at Chegutu Bus Terminus, destroying wares including electrical and mining equipment worth nearly US$50 000.
The cause of the fire, which broke out at around midnight on Tuesday, has not yet been established.
Devastated stall holders who had mining tools, electrical and general equipment destroyed said they needed resources to restock.
“We do not know how we are going to recover from this devastating blow. I lost an inventory worth about US$6500,” said a stall holder who had his mining tools destroyed.
The fire consumed everything including the roofing material.
Chairperson of the market Mr Jealous Phiri said nothing could be salvaged after the fire broke out.
“It is not yet clear as to what could have triggered the fire but the effort of Chegutu Fire Brigade could not stop the fire. Everything was destroyed as a result,” he said.
Chegutu West legislator Cde Shakemore Timburwa toured the market to assess the extent of damage.
“What we see here is painful and we are here to see how best the affected families can be helped to recover,” said Cde Timburwa.
Going forward, he said, there was need to work with insurance companies to come up with tailored packages for vendors.
“The people affected here are managing to look after their families from selling their wares. We need to come up with interventions that ensure they are not be destroyed forever in the event of such mishaps,” he said.
The legislator took measurements of the destroyed stalls to come up with a bill of quantities for the restoration of the market.
