Five persons have been recovered dead from the debris of an early hours collapsed building at 13, Wilson Mba Street, Arowojobe Estate, Maryland, while five others were rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment.
According to an eyewitness, the incident occurred about 3:58 a.m.
At press time, men of the Lagos State Emergency Management Authority (LASEMA), were at the scene of the incident for rescue operations. It was discovered that a set of three terraces under construction collapsed.
LASEMA Permanent Secretary, Dr. Femi Oke-Osanyitolu, who spoke on the incident, said search and rescue operations began immediately.
He said: “Initially, five adult males were recovered dead, two male adults were rescued and one adult male trapped under the rubbles was rescued by the LASEMA and the Lagos State Fire Service.
“All the six men were site workers. They are receiving pre-hospital care on location while the State Environmental Health Monitoring Unit (SEHMU), has been contacted for the remains of the three fatalities”.
He explained that part of the reinforcements would be taken for material testing to identify the cause of the incident. “So far, no one has come forward to say he or she owns the property. We’re appealing to the owner to come forward”, Akinsanya added.
Emergency teams at the scene of the incident, include Lagos State Rescue and Fire Service, Nigeria Police and other rescue teams. LASEMA’S excavator had been deployed to accelerate the search and rescue operations.
