The Citizen (Dar es Salaam)
Elias Mhegera And Paul Dotto
2 July 2009
A man was injured and property worth million of shillings destroyed, following a fire outbreak at Top Land Hotel in Magomeni Mapipa yesterday morning.
The hotel manager, Mr Felix Samba, said hotel workers the fire started at around 9.50a.m. The workers tried to put it out using a single fire extinguisher, but failed. They later called in the fire brigade which arrived at the scene at about 10.20a.m.
But the fire tender ran out of water after only ten minutes. However, another fire tender from Ultimate Security arrived.
A customer staying in the hotel of Arab origin, was knocked down by a vehicle as he tried to ran out of the hotel, property of one Fredrick Kyando.
It was later established that fire had started in the very room the Arab man was staying, whom the hotel manager alleged to be a chain smoker.
He said soon after the fire erupted, he sent his assistant to inspect the room rented out to the Arab man identified as Mr Seif Ahmed, but the man refused to answer questions. He ran out of the hotel, only to be knocked down by a passing vehicle.
An eye witness who lives near the hotel, Mr Habib Ally, 40, said Mr Ahmed who was in a state of panic, tried to cross the road and was knocked by a lorry.
Another hotel worker who spoke on condition of anonymity, said Mr Ahmed is a chain smoker. He speculated that the fire could have been started by a cigarette butt he might have thrown haphazardly.
Meanwhile, another fire broke at Kigogo Dampo, causing panic in nearby houses.
A fire tender that arrived to put out the fire, ran out of water after few minutes and it left for refill.
The fire, according to witnesses, started at around 9a.m, but they were not sure of the cause.
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