Traders in one of the country's biggest markets are living in fear amidst claims of a lack of safety measures.

Authorities have failed to equip Suq Waqf in Hamad Town with fire extinguishers and water sprinkler systems, said traders, who warned it could be destroyed within seconds in the event of a fire.

Their concerns come after a blaze decimated the Isa Town traditional market on Sunday, destroying more than 500 stalls and resulting in losses worth hundreds of thousands of dinars.

Around 120 firemen from all of Bahrain's fire stations, including those on leave and off-duty, were called to the scene and battled for more than five hours to bring the blaze under control.

It started in a stall selling electronics, although the exact cause remains unknown.

Vendors in Suq Waqf said their lives were already put at risk in March when a major fire broke out in the market, destroying two shops and two storage units and causing damage worth BD10,000.

"I can't even imagine what we will do if fire breaks out," said Bahraini Ahmed Abduljabar, who owns a bird shop.

"There is no safety. There used to be security, but they got rid of most of them ages ago.

"The fire that happened recently damaged the roof, so I am worried that if there is another fire, the roof would collapse on the suq and it will be devastating, we could get killed.

"My family has been in this business since the 1970s. We don't have insurance on the shop, so if it burns down, my fate will be in the hands of God because no one will help me."

The March fire had also damaged lighting fixtures and wiring, which were quickly fixed. But, the debris created by the blaze was not removed and has created a build-up of trash, which could be flammable, said traders.

Another vendor, whose stall was affected by the fire, said Sunday's blaze had left them all fearful of the dangers such an incident could pose.

"We don't have insurance and there is no insurance on the shops in the suq, so we had to rebuild the stand at our own expense, which took about four days," said K K Sajiv, who sells vegetables in the market.

"The fire damaged the roof too which is buckling and it is worrying us all in the suq. It has been reported and they said they will fix it but still nothing has happened until now."

He was also concerned about the lack of security in the area, which has resulted in thefts after dark.

"The bigger issue we are facing is thefts, we really need security at night," Mr Sajiv stressed.

"Things like fruits and vegetables are stolen and we keep a little money at the stands as petty cash and that gets stolen too."

Another vegetable seller demanded authorities place more importance on safety in markets, saying such places were vulnerable to fires as shops and stalls were so closely situated.

"All it will take is one matchstick and that will be enough to make the whole suq go up in flames," said Rama Chandran, whose stand also burned down in the March fire.

"The problem is that there is so much rubbish around the area which is a big fire risk."

Bicycle shop owner Sheikh Mustaqeem said majority of traders were not aware of safety measures, including having fire extinguishers and water sprinkler systems across the suq.