A 24-hour supermarket in Avenida do Ouvidor Arriaga was completely gutted by fire in the early hours of yesterday, the Fire Services Bureau (CB) said.
A Fire Services Bureau spokesperson said they suspected that the blaze was caused by an electrical fault in a fridge at Vang Kei Supermarket on the ground floor of Block A of Fortune Tower in the thoroughfare that runs from Avenida do Almirante Lacerda to Avenida de Sidónio Pais.
The Fire Services Bureau received a report about the fire shortly before 2 a.m. yesterday. Firefighters rushed to the scene and extinguished the blaze in 18 minutes. No one was injured in the fire.
About 30 residents of the residential building self-evacuated during the fire, the spokesperson said. A woman told paramedics she felt unwell after inhaling smoke. She was taken to the public Conde de Sao Januario Hospital Centre for treatment, the spokesperson said.
According to the spokesperson, a staff member of the supermarket smelt burning, went to check and discovered that something was on fire. All the staff members and customers made a safe escape from the premises. The employees called the emergency services.
The spokesperson said that the fire spread quickly as the supermarket was filled with a large number of inflammable goods, adding that the supermarket was equipped with a sprinkler system.
The Fire Services Bureau has launched an investigation into the exact cause of the fire.
The owner of the supermarket, Ip Sio Man, went to the scene. Ip, chairman of Vang Kei Hong Trading Company Limited which runs several supermarkets in the city, told reporters at the scene it was difficult to estimate right away the financial loss resulting from the blaze.
Two firemen wearing breathing apparatus work outside the burning 24-hour Vang Kei Supermarket in Avenida do Ouvidor Arriaga in the early hours of yesterday.
Three firefighters check the gutted supermarket in Fortune Tower after the blaze has been extinguished. Photos: Iong Tat Choi
