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Source; mehrnews
A market caught fire in Spin Boldak district of south Afghanistan’s Kandahar province on Friday, causing huge damage, provincial government spokesman Mawlawi Ezam said.
The fire erupted in the morning rush hour and turned more than 50 containers to ashes until 11 a.m. local time in the market called Wiksh Bazaar, the official added.
Commercial goods including second-hand cars, spare parts and other items were in the market, the official said, adding billions of U.S. dollars feared to have been damaged to the market.
Firefighters had been striving to turn off the fire, the official said, adding the reason for the fire has yet to be determined.
Firefighters from Pakistan joined their Afghan colleagues to extinguish a fire broke out in a battery and spare parts market in the Spin Boldak district of southern Kandahar province before noon Friday.
Local officials in Kandahar confirmed the fire broke out in Wish Market shortly after 11am and the fire brigade had arrived at the scene.
Residents said the fire continued to burn and authorities in Chaman on the other side of the Durand Line had also been requested to assist in dousing the blaze.
Rahimullah, a shop owner in the market, said fire extinguishers from Chaman had also arrived to help put out the fire.
Sayed Wali, another shopkeeper, said most shops in the market sold batteries and auto parts, which might have suffered a lot of damage.
Security officials say fire brigades from Kandahar city and the army have also reached the scene.
The damage is yet to be assessed and officials say information in this regard will be shared later as the incident unfolds.