A section of Strovolos avenue, between the junction with Pavlos Mela street and the roundabout with Spyros Kyprianou avenue, was reopened to traffic at around 10pm on Monday. The stretch, in the direction from Nicosia to Lakatamia, had been closed earlier due to a fire in a shop.

The closure followed a fire that broke out around 7pm on the ground floor of a store in a multi-storey building on Strovolos avenue. Fire Service teams worked to extinguish the blaze, while police assisted with traffic management and the evacuation of a nearby apartment building.

Fire brigade spokesman Andreas Kettis said the building includes a basement, ground floor and mezzanine.

“The ground floor and mezzanine were on fire. During the firefighting operation, we checked whether the basement was also affected. Inside the building there were electrical appliances and office equipment,” he said.

All staff had safely exited the building, and a full inspection will follow once the fire is fully controlled. Two additional fire engines were deployed to support the operation.

According to the police, the causes of the fire will be investigated on Tuesday. No injuries have been reported.

The closure followed a fire that broke out around 7pm on the ground floor of a store in a multi-storey building on Strovolos avenue