TC Enjub: investigation after fire hits 60 shops
After firefighters contained a large morning blaze at the Enjub shopping centre in Block 45, emergency services have begun an on-site investigation. Shop owners report heavy material damage.
- The fire affected between 60 and 70 of roughly 400 shops in the Enjub shopping centre.
- Up to 45 firefighters with 14 vehicles took part in the response.
- Three firefighters were lightly hurt; no civilians were injured.
- The cause is officially unknown, and the interior ministry's emergency services are investigating.
A day after a large fire at the Enjub shopping centre in Block 45, New Belgrade, an on-site investigation has begun. The blaze swept through dozens of shops the previous morning, and the response lasted for hours. The emergency services department of the interior ministry is now working to determine how the fire started and how much damage it caused.
According to early estimates, the fire affected between 60 and 70 shops out of roughly 400 in the complex. Enjub is one of the best-known market and retail sites in that part of the city, home to a large number of small traders. Many of them store goods and equipment there that their businesses depend on.
Up to 45 firefighters with 14 vehicles took part in the response. Crews worked for several hours to contain the blaze and stop it from spreading to the rest of the complex. Three firefighters were lightly hurt, while among civilians, according to information so far, no one was injured.
What will the investigation show?
The official cause of the fire has not yet been established. According to unofficial information, the suspicion is that electrical installations damaged during a storm the previous evening led to the blaze. A severe storm hit Belgrade before the fire, and faults in wiring after such conditions are not unusual.
That suspicion, however, still has to be checked. The investigation by the emergency services involves examining the scene, documenting traces and identifying where the fire began. Only after a forensic assessment will it be possible to say whether the cause was technical or something else. Until then, any claim about the cause remains an assumption.
For shop owners, the question of responsibility also matters. If it is confirmed that the fire began due to a wiring fault, it raises the question of who was obliged to maintain the installations and whether anyone failed to do so. The investigation does not settle those questions; that would be a matter for any proceedings that might follow.
How heavy is the loss for traders?
Shop owners report heavy material damage. For small traders, losing goods, equipment and premises means an interruption of business, and for some, months of recovery. Markets of this type typically bring together family-run shops and resellers whose daily turnover is their only income.
The scale of the damage will only be known once the building is cleared and each owner records what was lost. Some shops were probably destroyed completely, while others may have been damaged by smoke and by water used to put out the fire. The assessment will also depend on whether the building is safe to enter.
Insurance is another issue in cases like this. Not all small traders are insured against fire, so for some, any compensation will depend solely on whether someone is found responsible. That is a process that takes time, while the consequences are felt immediately.
For now, it is known that no civilians were injured and that the fire was put out before it engulfed the whole complex. The rest, from the exact cause to the amount of damage, will be determined by the authorities. How quickly, in your view, should traders expect an answer about the cause after a fire like this?
