Fire burns INEC card readers in Ondo

TRACKING____Fire officials last night watched helplessly as fire razed the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) office in Akure, the Ondo State capital.

The office of the fire service is adjacent to INEC office, but the men on ground said there is no water to put out the inferno.

The fire gutted parts of the INEC office and razed the section where card readers are kept.

As at press time, the fire was still on and fire service officials were battling to put it out.

A top official of INEC, who pleaded anonymity, said the fire razed the section where card readers were kept.

He attributed the cause to electrical surge, as the card readers were always charged inside the place.

Another official said the fire started at about 8:13pm and affected the ICT unit of the INEC office.

The firemen, who raced to the scene, were helpless, as they claimed they had no water.

INEC Commissioner in charge of Information and Voters Education, Festus Okoye, who spoke on the scene of the incident, said the fire affected the ICT section of the commission.

He said over 5,100 card readers were burnt, including the 1,000 card readers delivered to Ondo INEC from Osun State.

Fire service men from the Akure Airport, who arrived at exactly 9:14pm, were battling to quench the inferno at press time.