A fire thought to have been sparked by faulty electrical wiring destroyed 22 hairdressing stalls early on Monday morning at a Phnom Penh market slated for redevelopment, officials said.
No one was injured by the blaze at the Phsar Kandal market in Daun Penh district, which started at about 4 a.m. and burned through the salons before a fleet of 20 firetrucks brought it under control about an hour later, municipal fire department official Kong Pho said.
An investigation “found that this fire was caused by an explosive electric wire,” Mr. Pho said.
City Hall’s plans to redevelop the market were confirmed in May, causing uncertainty among vendors afraid of being forced out.
Sok Sreymon, 25, whose salon was among those razed in the fire, suspected that the fire had been deliberately set.
“Vendors always unplug the electrical mains before we go home,” she said, adding that there had been a similar fire two weeks ago put out by vendors before it could spread.
“This store is my rice pot,” she said.
“But now the fire has destroyed it.”
