A fire outbreak has gutted the cold store of the Ebonyi State Ministry of Health, destroying drugs, vaccines, and property worth millions of naira.

The incident was disclosed by the State Commissioner for Health, Moses Ekuma, during an on-the-spot assessment, noting that the fire occurred on Friday at Block 5, Centenary City, Abakaliki.

The blaze destroyed vaccines, vaccine carriers, cold-chain boxes, laptops, official documents, five refrigerators, two solar-powered refrigerators, and 45 solar batteries and inverters.

Hospital beds and mattresses supplied by the National Primary Health Care Development Agency for distribution were also lost.

The incident has significantly disrupted immunisation operations in the state, with critical vaccines and infrastructure wiped out by the fire.

Ekuma lamented the scale of the damage, stating that vital vaccines stored in the facility were completely destroyed.

• “Vaccines such as BCG, pentavalent, and HPV, among others, stored in the cold room, were completely destroyed,” he said.

He added that although the loss was massive, no lives were lost, and he commended emergency responders for containing the fire and preventing it from spreading further.

The commissioner noted that the exact cause of the fire remains unknown, but disclosed that the facility had been without public electricity supply for about five days. He said efforts were underway to restore power through the Enugu Electricity Distribution Company, while the solar backup system was also non-functional at the time.

Ekuma further revealed that a committee had been set up to investigate the cause of the fire and recommend preventive measures, while alternative office arrangements had been made for affected staff.

The fire broke out in the early hours, prompting an emergency response from the state fire service and other agencies.

According to the Officer in Charge of Operations at the State Fire Service, Frank Oka Ota, his team received a distress call at about 5:18 a.m. and responded immediately.

He described the fire as intense, noting that swift intervention helped contain the blaze and prevent further damage to adjoining structures. He also commended the state government for providing new fire trucks, which enhanced response capacity, while calling for the recruitment of additional personnel.

The incident has also raised concerns about infrastructure challenges, particularly the lack of electricity supply at critical health facilities, which may have contributed to the scale of the loss.

Fire outbreaks have continued to rise across Nigeria, causing significant human and economic losses.

On March 18, Nairametrics reported that the Federal Fire Service recorded 15 fire incidents in Kano in February, resulting in five deaths and property losses estimated at N12 billion.