A MONTH-OLD business in Port Elizabeth's North End was ruined within minutes after a fire broke out in a small shop and takeaway yesterday.
Two fire engines responded to the fire at The Little Kitchen, which broke out after 4pm, and quickly doused the blaze in the small premises in South Street.
Neighbouring business owners, including Angelo Moodley of AMKA paints and coatings, saw smoke pouring out from a chimney in the building and rushed over with fire extinguishers before calling the fire department. No one was in the shop at the time of the fire and the full extent of the damage is yet to be determined.
A distraught Janey Tredoux said she had had the business for only a month. It had not yet been insured. She thought an electrical fault might have caused the fire.
"We closed the business to customers at 2.30pm and then cleaned the premises thoroughly. At 3.30pm, we locked the doors and left. I went to buy more stock.
"Then I got the call that the place was on fire. This is terrible. I have only been open for a month," she said.
She said she was new to the city, having moved from East London. - Shaun Gillham