A fire broke out at a timber market in the eastern Afghan city of Jalalabad early on Tuesday, causing heavy financial losses but no casualties, Taliban police in Nangarhar province said.
The blaze erupted in the city’s second district and was later brought under control, the Taliban provincial police command said in a statement, adding that the extent of the damage was still being assessed.
A local source said the fire was caused by an electrical short circuit and destroyed large quantities of timber, resulting in losses amounting to millions of afghanis. No injuries or deaths were reported.
Fires are common in the country’s markets due to poor electrical infrastructure and limited fire-fighting capacity.
