At least five people have died after a three-storey building collapsed on Oremeta Street in the Ojodu-Berger area of Lagos State.
The building, which reportedly housed a local restaurant and was still under construction, came crashing down around 8 am on Saturday, April 19.
The National Emergency Management Agency confirmed the incident in a statement on Sunday, saying 15 people have been rescued so far.
Mr Ibrahim Farinloye, NEMA’s South-West Coordinator, said, “A total of 20 victims were rescued, while six adult females and nine adult males were rescued alive. Unfortunately, five bodies, which comprise three females and two adult males, were recovered. Rescue operation is ongoing.”
The agency explained that emergency responders quickly moved into action after receiving a distress alert on Saturday morning.
“NEMA, in collaboration with other emergency response agencies and local volunteers, immediately launched a search and rescue operation using both light and heavy-duty equipment,” the agency stated on its X (formerly Twitter) handle.
The operation continued overnight into Sunday morning. According to NEMA, after a short two-hour break, rescuers resumed work when it was reported that one person might still be missing under the rubble.
The Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) also joined in the rescue mission. The Permanent Secretary of LASEMA, Damilola Oke-Osanyitolu, said, “We’re working with all the local people; we’re working with all the primary responders and we’re on top of the situation. By the time we get to ground zero, we’ll see everything that is in there and we’re going to give a comprehensive report.”
He added that Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has been fully informed and is actively coordinating the emergency response.
A resident who spoke to reporters said the building collapsed shortly after some restaurant workers arrived in the morning.
“It happened so fast,” the resident said. “People were just arriving at work when the building went down.”
The cause of the collapse is still being investigated. Meanwhile, rescue teams remain at the scene as search efforts continue.
