A fire broke out in the premises of Tic Tac Boutique Hotel in the Kacyiru area on Friday, June 5.

The Police Fire and Rescue Brigade put out the fire that broke out around 9am, collapsing the ceiling of the restaurant.

CIP Wellars Gahonzire, the police spokesperson in the City of Kigali, said the fire is suspected to have been caused by welding activities taking place near a nightclub within the premises.

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He added that the Fire and Rescue Brigade intervened promptly and extinguished the fire before it spread throughout the entire building. However, several areas and materials were damaged, including chairs, the roof, the nightclub area, musical instruments, and soundproof system.

The value of the damaged equipment has not been established.

Gahonzire noted that similar incidents have occurred before, including in April when a building was also affected by a fire under similar circumstances involving welding activities.

He explained that such cases show the importance of safety during construction or expansion works.

"This shows that owners of hotels, bars, and other establishments who are expanding their activities must ensure safety during welding works. They should have people responsible for safety to monitor whether such activities may cause any danger, because in this case the welder was alone,” he said.

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A chef at the hotel said the fire started at around 9:00 a.m. and workers immediately evacuated the building.

He added that no clients were inside the building at the time of the incident.

"We immediately ran out and looked for a police officer on the road, asking him to call his colleagues, because we believed it would be more effective than doing it ourselves. The fire brigade arrived within 10 to 15 minutes and managed to control the fire within about five minutes,” he said.

"I heard that a worker who came to repair the water pipeline system might have been the one doing welding that caused the fire,” he added.

He confirmed that several items were destroyed, including refrigerators, ovens, beds, chairs, and music instruments. The nightclub, bar, restaurant, and rooms were also affected.

Call for precautions

Gahonzire further emphasized the need for supervision during such works, saying there should be another person in charge to ensure that no incident occurs, preferably electricians or fire safety personnel who can intervene in case of emergency.

He also urged business owners to take fire safety precautions during expansion activities.

"People must be careful when welding. For example, if there are chairs nearby, they should think about the risk that sparks can cause fire and move all flammable materials. People should not feel safe in unsafe situations; they must remain cautious,” he said.

He added that welding should not be carried out in congested or uncontrolled spaces where it would be difficult to manage an emergency.

Gahonzire also urged the public to immediately call police in case of fire outbreaks, noting that emergency response services are free of charge.

"Calling on time is essential, as we have seen cases where timely intervention helped prevent major damage,” he said.

He noted that Rwanda is currently in a dry season, where fire can spread very quickly even from a small spark.

"People must check electric wires. If they are worn out, they should replace them,” he said.

He further advised people building houses to ensure they use quality electrical materials and confirm that installations are properly done without faulty wiring.

The police also encouraged hotels and other public gathering places to take advantage of free fire safety training offered by the Rwanda National Police.

"We provide training on fire fighting for free. We urge hotel owners and managers to approach us so that we can train them. We can even go to their premises,” he said.

He added that some hotel owners have already received training at the police headquarters in Kacyiru, and encouraged others to follow.

Gahonzire emphasized that such establishments should have at least two trained individuals who are knowledgeable about fire safety and can respond quickly in case of an emergency.

He also called on building owners to ensure they have insurance coverage, noting that it helps reduce losses in case of fire outbreaks.

"When fire occurs, many things are destroyed. Having insurance makes recovery easier. People should get insurance from authorized companies,” he said.