Many studies have attributed these incidences to a lack of preparedness measures that ensure preventive and mitigation measures for fire disasters (Kihila, 2017; Adekunle et al., 2018; Elenwo et al., 2019; Adeleye et al., 2020; Okwuonu et al., 2021). Many of the prominent marketplaces in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria have experienced numerous fire disasters, as earlier mentioned. However, many of these disasters have been attributed to poor attitude and awareness, lack of facilities, and poor knowledge of fire disaster response. Considering this shortcoming, the present study assesses fire disaster emergency preparedness among marketers at significant markets in Niger Delta, Nigeria.

Materials and Methods

Study area

The study was carried out within the Niger Delta Region of Nigeria, which is located at 4º49’60”N and 6º0’00” East (Figure 1), protruding towards the Gulf of Guinea on the Atlantic coast of West Africa (Shittu, 2014). The region comprises the present-day Abia, Akwa-Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross River, Delta, Edo, Imo, Ondo, and Rivers states. Major markets were selected from  Bayelsa, Cross- River and Rivers states. The land mass extends about 70,000 km2, making up 7.5% of Nigeria's landmass. The Niger Delta region is oil-rich by nature and has been the centre of international controversy over waste of natural resources, pipeline vandalism, devastating pollution, ecocide, and human rights violations. The nation extracts over 2 million barrels of crude oil from the Niger Delta region in a day (Ekwo, 2011).

Research Design and Data Analysis

The study adopted a survey research design. The study population comprised shop owners/space occupants from significant rivers, cross-rivers, and Bayelsa State markets. For proper coverage, each market's database of the registered shop owner/space occupants was sourced from the market associations (Table 1). With the aid of Taro Yamane, 400 sample sizes were sorted across the study area, while the distribution of the sample size was based on the percentage (proportion) of registered shop owners/space occupants from each market. A simple random sampling technique was adopted for the selection of respondents. Out of 400 copies of the questionnaire purposively administered, 384 copies were filled correctly and fit for analysis, representing 96% of administered questionnaires. The retrieved copies of the questionnaire were coded and subjected to statistical analysis using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS-21) for proper analysis. The study data were analysed through descriptive and inferential statistics.

Figure 1: Overview of the Study Area and Study Points (Markets) 

Table 1: Administration of the Questionnaire among the LGAs of Study

Result

Socio-Demographic Details of the Respondents

The socio-demographic details of those involved in the assessment are presented in Table 2. The outcome deduced that 59.9% of the respondents engaged in the investigation were male within the age group of 30-40 years (43.5%). This indicated that most of those involved are within the age group that would understand the importance of the study. The marital status deduced that 58.3% are married and educated, with 35.1% and 15.9% possessing secondary and tertiary education, respectively. This implies that many of the respondents understand the present study.  The investigation further indicated that 31.5% had occupied their shop/space for about six months to 4 years, 25.8% had occupied their shop/space for about 5-7years, and 42.7% had occupied their shop/space for about eight years and above. This indicates that many respondents can give accurate feedback concerning market fire incidents in the past few years.

Table 2: Socio-Demographic Details of the Respondents

Causes and Frequency of Fire Disaster among Markets

The causes and frequency of fire incidents in the markets were assessed and presented in Table 3. The outcome indicated that 58.1% of the engaged individuals knew about market fire disasters, while 41.9% claimed otherwise. Among other things, 64.3% of the individuals involved in the investigation linked incidents of fire disaster to an electrical fault, 14.6% linked cooking with naked flames while 7.0% (each) of the individuals in the study linked fire disaster in the market to overload of electrical appliance, carelessness in the use of fire and other causal agents. Furthermore, those involved in the investigation indicated that fire disasters often take place in less than six months, which represents 11.2%, 26.3% claimed the oftenest is within one year, 42% claimed the oftenest is between 2-3years, while 7.0% and 13.5% claimed the oftenest is between 4-5years and 6years more respectively. The extent of the frequency, as indicated by those involved in the investigation, was 37.8% for the monthly extent, and 62.2% claimed it was the yearly extent.

Awareness and Knowledge of Fire Disaster Emergency Preparedness

The respondents’ feedback on the extent of awareness and knowledge of fire disaster emergency preparedness was presented in Table 4. The outcome revealed that 32.0% of those individuals in the investigation indicated being cognisant of fire disaster emergency readiness, 18.8% claimed not to be cognisant, and 49.2% of those engaged are undecided about their cognisant of fire disaster emergency readiness. Considering the “Muster Point” point in the market, 27.3% of the engaged individuals claimed to be aware of the fact, 59.4% claimed not to be mindful of such a point, and 13.3% of the involved individuals are undecided about such a point. Similarly, 10.9% of the engaged space occupants claimed to know the emergency contact to reach during a fire disaster, 81.5% are not cognisant of such contact, and 7.6% are undecided about the emergency contact. Among the shop occupants engaged, 9.1% claimed to possess a “very adequate” understanding of fire disaster preparedness, 22.9% claimed to possess an “adequate” experience, while 39.3% and 28.7% claimed to possess an “inadequate” and “very inadequate” understanding of fire disaster preparedness respectively.

Table 3: Causes and Frequency of Fire Disaster in Markets

The outcome deduced that 32.8% of the occupants engaged in the investigation get their information from their association, 12.8% claimed they sourced their information through television and radio, 6.5% sourced through newspapers, 13.0% sourced through social gathering lectures, 13.3% source of information was based on their personal experience while 21.1% and 0.5% of the occupants engaged in the investigation claimed to source their information through family and friends and other possible sources respectively. Furthermore, 37.8% claimed to possess a “very adequate” understanding of fire safety practices, 15.6% claimed to possess an “adequate” experience, while 30.7% and 15.9% claimed to possess an “inadequate” and “very inadequate” understanding of fire disaster preparedness, respectively. The outcome indicated that 23.7% of the individuals involved in the study had never responded to a fire disaster emergency, 40.1% claimed to have responded but as a volunteer, 32.0% claimed to have responded but as a victim, while 1.6% and 2.6% of the shop occupants claimed to have responded as official responder from the market association and in another form respectively.

Table 4: Awareness and Knowledge of Fire Disaster Emergency Preparedness