A team of firefighters from the Gambia Fire and Ambulance Services, yesterday, contained an inferno that broke out at FUDA Enterprises, adjacent to the Kotu Power Station.

The timely intervention of the gallant firefighters resulted to the quelling of a raging fire that emanated from the refinery of the enterprise which specialises in recycling sludge oil, which was said to have been accumulating for more than a decade. There were no injuries, although a proportional quantity of the oil was consumed.

Ousman Jammeh, the secretary of state Energy and Petroleum, visited the scene, accompanied by senior staff of Nawec to get a first-hand information on the gravity of incident.

Speaking to the journalists, Momodou Jallow, the managing director of Nawec, said he was informed of the incident in the morning, but was quick to rule that the fire has nothing to do with Nawec. He also noted that the power station was not threatened, as the incident happened adjacent to Kotu Power Station.

Mr Jallow said Nawec has been battling to get rid off sludge oil at the power station for the past 10 years, as it poses threat to environment. He said the waste used to spill to the rice fields and some part of Kotu environment.

The Nawec boss said the arrival of FUDA Enterprise has been a relief to his company, which used to spend a good portion of its income to manage the sludge oil. However, he disclosed that FUDA has been initially informed to vacate the place as soon as possible, as the area was given to them for a stated period.

Sirra Wally Ndow-Njie, the deputy managing director of Nawec and Mustapha Colley, the chairman of the Board of Directors of Nawec, expressed similar sentiments and assured the general public that everything was under control, while apologising to the neighbours for the smoke generated by the incident.

Shedding light on the aftermath of the incident, Richard Lee, the assistant to the managing director of FUDA Enterprise, said the cause of the fire is yet to be known, as investigation of the incident was ongoing. He thanked Nawec and the personnel of the Fire and Ambulance Services for their timely intervention.

Tombong Saidy, FUDA’s Gambian counterpart, described the incident as unfortunate, adding that they were on the verge of moving upcountry to Kaur at the end of this month.

Mr Saidy also apologised to the neighbours for the disturbance thanked both Nawec and the Gambia Fire and Ambulance Services for their support.