FOUR fires erupted within hours of one another on Sunday. The first blaze started at the popular five-storey store Al-Tawhid wal Nour in Helwan and devastated it completely, causing LE15 million of damage. It took 10 fire engines four hours to put the fire out. Soon after, 30 fire engines were needed to extinguish a blaze that erupted at the popular Souk Al-Gomaa in Al-Sayeda Aisha. The fire gutted tens of shops. In Sharabiya 70 fire engines were required to dampen flames that raged for seven hours. Although the reasons behind the first two fires remain unknown, the Sharabiya fire, say preliminary reports, was an act of deliberate arson. With many timber merchants in the area, and wind to fan the flames, the fire quickly spread. While 20 people were injured in the three fires there were no fatalities. One man was killed, however, when fire gutted a motel in Mansoura on the same day.
