10/3/2025
A major fire broke out on Thursday afternoon at the Adabraka-based premises of DTRT Group, a prominent textile and apparel manufacturer in Accra.
The fire, which reportedly started around 3:30 p.m., sent thick smoke billowing into the sky near the Graphic Press area, prompting a swift response from the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS).
Seven fire engines were deployed to the scene as firefighters worked for hours to bring the blaze under control. By 5:30 p.m., the GNFS had successfully confined the fire, preventing it from spreading to nearby buildings.
Accra nearly watched one of its key garment manufacturing hubs go up in smoke yesterday. A massive fire erupted on Thursday afternoon at the Adabraka premises of DTRT Group, a textile giant that employs thousands in Ghana. You could practically smell the burning synthetic thread from the Graphic Press area as thick, dark smoke choked the sky.
The blaze reportedly started around 3:30 p.m., triggering an immediate, high-priority response from the Ghana National Fire Service (GNFS). Seven fire engines-not a small number, mind you-were rapidly deployed to the scene to wrestle the inferno under control.
And they succeeded, but not without a fight. The GNFS worked for hours, bringing the blaze to heel by 5:30 p.m. and crucially confining it before it could leap to surrounding structures, including a nearby rice warehouse and a hotel (Per Graphic Online, October 3, 2025). The sheer heat caused parts of an adjacent structure, identified as a Budget Deco warehouse, to collapse, illustrating the intensity of the flames the crews faced.
One firefighter had to be rushed to the hospital after inhaling too much smoke, an unfortunate reminder of the risks involved. But here's the good news: no civilian casualties have been reported from the incident.
DTRT-which stands for "Do the Right Thing"-is an export-focused apparel manufacturer backed by Ghanaian, American, and German partners. It is one of the country's largest private-sector employers, with over 5,600 workers, many of them women (Per Seth Richmond, DTRT Co-CEO, June 12, 2024).
Anyway, the cause of the fire remains unknown, with investigations now underway. Yet, the quick action saved a major investment that is trying to build a vertically integrated textile and garment value chain here in West Africa.
Will this close call finally push businesses to double-check their fire safety protocols, or will we wait for the next alarm bell?
Source: https://citinewsroom.com/2025/10/fire-guts-dtrt-apparel-factory-in-adabraka-blaze-contained/