Tokyo fish market fire extinguished after 15 hours

Tokyo, Aug 4 (IANS) Firefighters on Friday extinguished a blaze that broke out at Tokyo's famous Tsukiji fish market, after about 15 hours of fighting the flames which raged on in an area of over 900 sq.metres.

The fire, which left no casualties, began at 4.50 p.m. on Thursday in a three-storeyed building located in the busiest part of the market with shops and restaurants, local authorities said.

Some 60 fire trucks were dispatched to the market to control the flames which originated inside an area with small shops difficult to access, reports Efe news.

At the request of the fire department, Tokyo Electric Power Company (TEPCO), shut down the power supply in the area of the fire, leaving 200 homes and businesses temporarily without electricity.

The affected part of the market, which receives about 60,000 customers per day, is known as "Jogai" and has a total of 400 shops and restaurants.

Considered the largest fish market in the world and one of the main tourist attractions of the Japanese capital, Tsukiji market opened in 1935 in its current and central location in Tokyo Bay.

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