One person has been confirmed dead and 13 others rescued after a two-storey building collapsed on Saturday morning at Oremeta Street, in the Ojodu-Berger area of Lagos State.
The building, which housed a local restaurant, came down around 8 a.m., causing panic in the neighbourhood as people rushed to the scene.
According to a resident who spoke to our correspondent, the building was under construction before it suddenly collapsed. “Some workers had just arrived at the restaurant when the building came down,” the resident said.
The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) confirmed the incident and said that rescue operations began immediately.
Mr. Ibrahim Farinloye, the South-West Coordinator of NEMA, said, “Twelve victims have been rescued, one adult dead. The cause of the collapse has not yet been confirmed.”
Emergency teams from different agencies, including the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), rushed to the scene.
The Permanent Secretary of LASEMA, Dr. Damilola Oke-Osanyintolu, said the agency had activated its emergency response plan under the guidance of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
“A two-storey building collapsed; we’ve activated the Lagos State Emergency response plan. We are taking careful steps and the operation is still ongoing,” he said.
He urged residents to remain calm and allow rescue teams to do their work.
“We will get to ground zero,” Oke-Osanyintolu assured. “There is no full list of people inside the building, but once we reach the bottom, we’ll know everything. The governor is aware and is coordinating our response.”
A resident who blamed the collapse on poor construction also accused the engineer of adding another floor without proper support.
“The engineer did not do the right thing. You can’t build a decking and leave it like that, especially during the rainy season,” the resident said. “They should also bring better machines to remove the rubble, not just break it and risk injuring people inside.”
Emergency teams were still working at the site as of the time of filing this report.
