The fire broke out on the evening of August 5 at Bien Hoa Market in Tran Bien Ward. Officials said the blaze is believed to have started in a single kiosk before rapidly spreading to neighbouring stalls, causing extensive property damage.
After receiving emergency calls from residents, the Dong Nai City People's Committee ordered firefighting units to dispatch multiple fire engines and emergency crews to the scene. Firefighters established containment lines and continuously sprayed water to prevent the flames from spreading across the market.
With the market's electricity supply cut off, firefighters relied on handheld lights while tackling the blaze in difficult conditions.
By about 10.30 pm on August 5, authorities had largely brought the fire under control.
Nguyen Duy Tan, chairman of the Tran Bien Ward People's Committee, said the affected kiosks mainly sold bamboo and rattan products, baskets and other highly combustible goods, allowing the fire to spread rapidly. He added that firefighters successfully prevented the blaze from reaching nearby residential buildings, although the extent of property losses has yet to be assessed.
The area around the market was sealed off as emergency crews continued their work, while many residents remained outside watching the operation late into the night.
Nguyen Van Ut, chairman of the Dong Nai City People's Committee, Vice Chairman Ho Van Ha and Senior Colonel Tran Anh Son, deputy director of the Dong Nai City Police, were at the scene to oversee the emergency response.
Shortly after midnight on August 6, the fire had been almost completely extinguished. Some traders whose stalls were located near the burned area returned to begin clearing debris.
Bien Hoa Market, inaugurated in June 2009 at a cost of VND 80 billion (approximately USD 3.06 million), is one of the city's largest traditional markets. Built on a site of nearly 5,600 square metres, it originally accommodated around 600 trading spaces across two floors and was later expanded in 2013 with an additional 2,200-square-metre section housing 350 more stalls, parking facilities and internal access roads.