A huge fire destroyed 39 stores in three markets in downtown Amman Thursday before hundreds of firefighters and civil defence personnel managed to bring it under control nine hours after its eruption at dawn, officials and businessmen said according to dpa. At least five firefighters suffered injuries as they struggled to extinguish the blaze, but no citizen was hurt, official spokesman of the Public Security Directorate Colonel Farid al-Sharaa said. More than 300 personnel from the Fire Brigade and the Civil Defence Department, aided by 60 vehicles, "managed to bring the fire under control this afternoon", he added. The blaze started at the four-storey Souq Bukhariyah, one of the oldest marketplaces in downtown Amman, and extended to two neighbouring shopping complexes. Al-Sharaa said that an ad hoc committee was set up to probe the reasons of the fire, that could be seen from a long distance. Another panel was also formed by the Amman Chamber of Commerce to appraise the "big losses" incurred by traders and businessmen as a prelude for compensating them, the chamber's director Mohannad Attar said. The chamber said that at least 39 stores were destroyed by the blaze, which aggravated the difficult financial situation experienced by businessmen due to the global recession. Most of the affected shops dealt with garments, accessories and antiques.
