Two injured as another building collapses in Lagos

Two persons were yesterday injured after a one-storey building collapsed in Mafoluku area of, Oshodi, Lagos State. The building located at No. 35, Adesanya Street, Mafoluku, suddenly went down from the middle at about 9:00a.m. yesterday.

Neighbours immediately swung into action to rescue the three persons trapped in the building. An eyewitness, Abdul-Rafil Olowoora, said: “I was sitting at my frontage when I heard a loud bang. I saw people running to the scene where the sound came from. It was then we discovered that the one-storey building had come down from the middle. I broke into the shop where I saw a Hausa man, who was one of the workers renovating the building. He gave us the information that some persons were still in the building and where we could locate them.”

According to Ibere George, son of the building owner, who also escaped the collapse, the building was acquired earlier this year and was undergoing renovation while they occupy some part of the building.He said: “I was not inside when it happened, I was in church. My siblings called me immediately it happened. They were about leaving for church when they got trapped in the building but residents came to their rescue. The building was supposed to be for church use. But after we bought it, we had issues with funds, which made us start the renovation from the middle of the building before it collapsed.”

Meanwhile, the remainder of the building has been pulled down by the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) to secure surrounding structures. Dr. Oke-Osanyintolu, Director General of LASEMA, who led the team of the demolition, confirmed that no life was lost and those injured have been taken to a private hospital for intensive treatment.

“We have informed the occupants of surrounding buildings to go for solid material testing. We have also informed the council chairman of Oshodi-Isolo that there is need to upgrade their environmental sanitation, especially drainage,” he said.