HANOVER, Jamaica — A massive fire destroyed several board shops at a section of the Lucea Market in Hanover on Friday morning.

A firefighter was also injured from electric shock in the incident, and has been hospitalised.

The Lucea Fire Brigade, which is located a short distance away, was alerted to the blaze at 3:51 am.

Firefighters hard at work in a cool down operation on the compound of the Lucea Market.

Two fire units responded with additional support from the Montego Bay and Negril fire stations. The fire was brought under control in about 45 minutes.

District Officer Emellio Somerville told Observer Online that some 22 shops were destroyed and six were partially destroyed.

“Team responded swiftly, got here in approximately three minutes, because it’s not far from the station. On arrival, we saw a section of the market on fire. One or two attack lines (fire trucks) were brought into operation to try and suppress the fire,” stated Somerville.

“However, we encountered some challenges as it relates to downed electrical wires, which kind of hampered the operation somewhat,” the district officer added.

The cause of the fire and the estimated loss to property and contents are unavailable at this time.

A team is currently carrying out an assessment and investigation into the incident.

— Anthony Lewis