Edo State Governor Godwin Obaseki has raised an eight-man panel to investigate the fire, which razed about 90 shops in the spare parts market in Uwelu, Egor Local Government.
The panel is headed by former Whip of the House of Assembly, Osaigbovo Iyoha.
Obaseki had assured the victims of support, and promised to set up a team to look into the cause of the fire as well as ways of assisting them.
Secretary to the State Government Osarodion Ogie, who inaugurated the committee, listed the terms of reference as examining the remote and immediate causes of the fire, and establishing the culpability of any person, group, corporation or entity.
Others are to establish the extent of damage and loss, and assess the effectiveness or otherwise of emergency responses.
The committee is to make recommendations to government on measures to avoid a recurrence.
Ogie urged the panel to summon any person or group to testify or present documents and visit the site of the incident.
He urged the committee to complete its work in one week.
Iyoha, who is also Obaseki’s Special Adviser on Political Matters (Edo South), promised that the committee would live up to the confidence reposed in it.
He pledged that members would deliver on time.
Some affected traders sold off what they could salvage from the fire to scrap dealers cheaply.
The scrap dealers said they bought the goods to prevent scavengers from collecting them.
