A number of vendor stalls in a row located opposite the ex-Canidrome in Fai Chi Kei were gutted by fire last night, the Fire Services Bureau (CB) said.
Kuok Pan, who heads the Areia Preta fire station, briefed reporters about the blaze at the scene.
According to the Kuok, the bureau received reports about the fire at around 7:30 p.m., after which firefighters arrived at the scene at 7:36 p.m., when several vendor stalls were ablaze.
Kuok said that the firefighters brought the blaze under control in 20 minutes, soon after which they extinguished it.
According to Kuok, a 59-year-old female stall holder felt unwell after inhaling smoke and was taken to hospital for examination.
The bureau deployed 11 fire engines and ambulances with 50 firefighters and paramedics to the scene for the fire-fighting operation, Kuok said.
The fire occurred in the area of vendor stalls located on the pavement opposite the former greyhound racetrack on Avenida do General Castelo Branco.
According to Kuok, 15 stalls in a row near To Pou Building were affected by the blaze. Around 70 residents from the building self-evacuated during the fire which resulted in thick smoke.
The stalls at the area had all closed after business hours before the blaze erupted shortly before 7:30 p.m.
Representatives from the city’s street-vendor sector told reporters at the scene last night that at least seven stalls were completely gutted by the blaze.
The Fire Services Bureau said in a statement late last night that the blaze was possibly caused by the malfunction of an electrical appliance in one of the stalls.
Firefighters battle a blaze at the area of vendor stalls in Fai Chi Kei last night. – Photo courtesy of TDM
