Mr Yemi Akinyinka, General Manager of the Oyo State Fire Service, confirmed this in a statement on Friday in Ibadan.
Akinyinka said the fire service received a distress call about the inferno through a telephone call from one Mr Young.
The general manager said that fire fighters were quickly deployed to the scene and they swung into action, preventing the fire from spreading to more shops.
Akinyinka said that efforts of the fire fighters saved property worth billions of naira from destruction.
He attributed the cause of the fire to power surge.
Eye witnesses told NAN that the fire started at Block A, No. 64, Mayegun Cement Store Market and raged for more than three hours before fire fighters were able to stop it. (NAN)
