Lagos, Nigeria — Panic don grip residents of Ojodu area as two-storey building wey dem use dey house Equal Right Restaurant collapse on Saturday morning around 9 am. The building collapse trap plenty people inside, including restaurant workers, customers, and one family wey dey there at that time.
Emergency response teams quickly rush come the scene to start rescue operations. Agencies like Police, Federal Road Safety Corps, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), and Lagos State Fire and Rescue Services dey busy working to free those wey dey trapped.
When our correspondent reach the site, dem see several sympathizers around, hoping for good news. Dr. Oluwafemi Oke-Osanyintolu, wey be Permanent Secretary of LASEMA, confirm say five persons don rescue alive as of the time of dis report.
“We dey approach the situation systematically, using heavy-duty and light-duty equipment to reach group ground. We get credible information sey more people still dey under the rubble, so we dey check layer by layer carefully to find survivors before we move ahead,” he talk.
As the situation unfold, Margaret Adeseye, the Director of Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, also confirm say there fit be more people trapped inside the debris. She talk through her spokesperson, Skahiru Amodu, say di victims wey dem don rescue suffer different degrees of injuries.
“We don always talk say e no good and safe for building to dey unoccupied for long, because over time e go lose integrity and strength to stand. Unoccupied buildings fit collapse at any time,” Adeseye explained, adding that everything dey under control and people no need to panic.
The collapse of buildings no be new thing for Lagos and Nigeria generally. Last year, five people loss their lives when another building collapse for Wilson Mba Street, Maryland. More than 115 cases of building collapse don happen in Lagos over the last 10 years.
According to LASEMA, from January to July 2022 alone, Lagos don record no less than 30 cases of building collapse, some of dem without fatalities, while others resulted in serious casualties. A notable incident happened in November 2021 when a 21-storey building collapse in Ikoyi, killing about 45 people.
Indeed, di collapse wey happen on Oremeta Street on Saturday don leave many families and friends dey worried as dem dey wait for updates on the trapped victims. Meanwhile, NEMA has confirmed that one person don die from di incident and they still dey investigate di cause of di building collapse.
The building collapse attract public concerns as residents of di area don start to dey call for stricter building regulations and inspections to prevent such tragedies in di future. Rescue operations dey continue as authorities dey work tirelessly to ensure no one dey left behind.
