Fire guts SPAR mall in Calabar.

A major fire incident has gutted the popular SPAR Mall in Calabar, the Cross River State capital, on Saturday morning.

Multiple eyewitness videos circulating across social media show thick black smoke and intense flames from the facility.

In the trending videos, panicked onlookers and distressed shop owners gathered outside the burning complex as the blaze spread through the building.

“It’s moving from shop to shop,” a witness was heard saying in one of the viral clips.

Others expressed frustration over the perceived delay in emergency response as shop owners watched helplessly while goods worth millions of naira were destroyed.

“No fire service in Calabar,” another witness lamented in a video recorded at the scene.

A woman, weeping in the background of another video, added, “What a day. See what is happening to millions of naira at SPAR shopping mall. No water to quench it, no fire service to rescue. Look at our shops and millions of naira.”

Subsequent footage, however, showed a fire truck and police personnel arriving at the scene to restore order, manage crowd control, and battle the inferno.

The cause of the fire has not yet been determined.

As of the time of filing this report, neither the Cross River State Government nor local emergency management authorities have issued an official statement regarding casualties, structural integrity, or the extent of financial losses.

Watch videos from the fire scene below:

𝐕𝐈𝐃𝐄𝐎: 𝐅𝐢𝐫𝐞 𝐑𝐚𝐠𝐞𝐬 𝐂𝐚𝐥𝐚𝐛𝐚𝐫 𝐌𝐚𝐥𝐥

A major fire incident has gutted the popular SPAR Mall in Calabar, the Cross River State capital, on Saturday morning.

Video: X| ChuksEricE, Nigdeltainsider, OgarEmmaOwogeka, Martinlenses pic.twitter.com/yYjpg8B2qQ

— Punch Newspapers (@MobilePunch) August 22, 2026