A commercial building in Niboye Sector, Kicukiro district was on Monday afternoon gutted by fire, affecting two businesses on the building - a pharmacy and a dry cleaning shop.

The affected house is located on KK 21 Avenue, opposite Kicukiro Simba Supermarket.

Witnesses found at the scene said that the fire broke a few minutes past 3 pm. Approximately 30 minutes later, police firefighters were at the scene and it took at least 40 minutes to put out the fire.

Police suspect that a short circuit might have caused the fire.

No deaths or injuries were recorded, except one employee who experienced a simple electrical shock and was immediately rushed to hospital by an ambulance.

When The New Times arrived at the scene, the fire had ceased and people were evacuating few of the pharmaceuticals, files, and machinery they could salvage.

The building was severely burnt that repair is not an option; the wood ceiling was completely razed and the white paints are all masked in black fumes.

The damages incurred by the pharmacy difficult to estimate at the moment as some drugs would look unharmed, but might have been, for instance, exposed to unrecommended temperatures, according to the police.

A thorough evaluation of the medical store by the Ministry of Health will follow soon.

The dry cleaner where people at the scene say the fire started faced the more serious damage - washing machines and dryers completely burnt out.

The owners told Police that the building and the pharmacy were insured. However, both proprietors could not openly talk to The New Times.

The building was registered in the names of Straton Nzitabakuze while the pharmacy belongs to Marie Louise Tuyisenge.