By JOSEPHINE NAVULA
Nadi woke up to a shocking and devastating fire that completely destroyed the iconic Morris Hedstrom Supermarket situated in the heart of Nadi Town, yesterday.
Nadi Chamber of Commerce & Industry President, Dr Ram Raju said, it is believed the fire started about 1 am this morning and despite allefforts by the NFA, it was beyond any salvage.
“Most shops and dept stores such as Prouds (Motibhais), R B Patel, Jacks of Fiji, Sharmas Music and Sharmas Rental, and Tappoos were threatened but the NFA were able to cordon off and prevented the fire from spreading. Some damage however was sustained by Sharmas building,” he said.
This is another major blow to business in town when we had all recovered from the natural disasters last year
Dr Raju said this is really sad and unfortunate and all of sudden the most important popular and oldest supermarket was destroyed.
“MH was renowned for its up market clienteles which offered the widest range of quality products and services and it employed up to 50 people. Their livelihood is at stake however I believe most will be redeployed to their other stores, one of which is situated in Namaka,” he said.
Thousands of regular customers will obviously be deprived of shopping at this popular store right here in the bustling town of Nadi.
It was a popular destination for locals and tourists alike which offered the widest range of goods in Nadi.
Dr Raju finally adds that they hope the cause of fire is quickly investigated and we realize the massive losses sustained by the company but I hope they were fully insured.