Fire consumes businesses in a market in San Pedro Sula, the second largest city in Honduras

A voracious fire consumed more than a dozen businesses on Monday in a popular market in San Pedro Sula, the second most important city in Honduras, located in the north of the Central American country.

“We have stayed on the street, it was the only thing we had to live on,” a woman who said she was the owner of a “small family business,” said crying to journalists, of various products, including clothing.

The causes of the incident are unknown, which, an hour after it originated, had not been put down by the Fire Brigade, an official from the relief institution told reporters.

The fire destroyed businesses built with wooden planks and zinc sheets of independent entrepreneurs in San Pedro Sula and spread to the commercial building known as La Mundial, from whose basement the firefighters removed several vehicles due to the danger of the fire spreading. up to that sector.

Local media attributed the incident to a possible explosion of a gas cylinder.

Dozens of people, including owners, families and volunteers, took out in cardboard boxes what they could from the businesses that were hit by the flames.

“That the Government help us to rebuild our stalls, we have debts to pay and now we cannot do it because we have been left on the street,” said another of the merchants affected by the fire, which occurred a few meters from the cathedral. from San Pedro Sula and the old Hotel San Pedro, among other buildings.

Dense columns of black smoke rose because of the incident, which, according to versions of street vendors, could have been caused by the explosion of a liquefied gas cylinder.

The amount of losses left by the fire is unknown, the origin of which will be known until the debris has been controlled and removed, said one of the firefighters who participated in the tasks of putting out the fire, who also pointed out that La Mundial had “highly flammable” material. (I)