Samson Folarin and Olaleye Aluko
No fewer than three people have lost
their lives in separate fire incidents in the FESTAC Town, Badagry and
Surulere areas of Lagos State.
While an eight-month-old baby was killed
in FESTAC Town, a 90-year-old woman was burnt to death in Badagry,
while an 83-year-old man died in the Surulere incident.
Our correspondents gathered that the
fire that killed the baby, identified as Jessica Ifeanyichukwu, started
at about 9pm on Sunday.
Her mother, Ndubuisi Ifeanyichukwu, was
trying to put on the family generator downstairs when the incident
happened at the family’s three-bedroomed apartment on Hakeem Agboola
Crescent.
It was gathered that although the fire
was not caused by the generator, it happened while Ndubuisi struggled to
put on the generator.
The fire reportedly started from the Ifeanyichukwus’ apartment.
When PUNCH Metro visited the
area on Tuesday, the landlady, who gave her name only as Bassey, said
the cause of the fire still remained a mystery to her.
She said, “The woman came out around
8.30pm from her apartment to start the generator. She and her husband
stayed upstairs and she carried the generator downstairs. She tried to
start the generator three times, but it did not work.
“She went back to her apartment. Later,
she came down to switch on the bigger generator. When she returned to
the room, the entire apartment was already in flames.
“The couple has left since the incident
happened. Nobody knows the cause of the fire. The police have not found
out anything. The fire also affected a section of my apartment. What
made the situation worse was that the woman’s husband was not at home.”
The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Dolapo Badmos, confirmed the incident.
She said, “The fire was put out by a
team of policemen and the state firefighters. The baby was consumed by
the fire, while the injured mother is receiving treatment in a hospital.
The cause of the fire and the value of the property destroyed have yet
to be known.”
In Surulere, an 80-year-old man,
identified as Godwin Oyia, lost his life on Aborishade Close, after fire
engulfed his residence.
Property estimated at millions of naira was reportedly lost to the inferno which started around 10am on Tuesday.
PUNCH Metro learnt that after residents tried in vain to put out the fire, the Lagos State Fire Service was alerted.
An official of the agency, who did not want to be identified, said the fire was caused by a plugged boiling ring.
He said, “The house is a one
storeyed-building. The fire started from one of the rooms on the first
floor. We learnt that a tenant, who was using a boiling ring, left it
unattended to. After the water he was boiling dried up, there was an
explosion.
“The man who died lived with his
granddaughter. When the fire started, neighbours rescued the girl, but
when they returned for the man, the fire had aggravated. We saw the
man’s charred remains in the last room after the fire was put out.”
The General Manager of the Lagos State
Emergency Management Agency, Michael Akindele, said the agency removed
the corpse and handed it over to the police.
“The whole of the top floor of the
building was razed. However, the ground floor was salvaged with the
support of other sister agencies who joined us during the operation.”
The Director of the Lagos State Fire
Service, Rasak Fadipe, said the agency deployed firefighters from the
Ilupeju, Alausa and Isolo stations to the scene.
He said, “We were able to stop the fire
from spreading beyond the first floor. It was at the end of the
operation that we discovered the deceased.”
In the Badagry inferno, PUNCH Metro learnt that the victim, 90-year-old Mrs. Kayode, had lighted a local lamp around 8pm and gone to bed.
The lamp reportedly fell on her on the bed, setting the house on fire.
Our correspondent gathered that the
victim, who initially suffered burns, was rushed to a hospital in the
area, where she eventually died.
A source said, “The incident happened
around 8pm on Monday on Market Road, Badagry. The woman lighted a local
lamp, which fell on her bed. She suffered serious burns and was rushed
to a hospital, where she died.”
The director of the state fire service, Fadipe, said firefighters rescued the victim alive.
“She died at the hospital because of the smoke,” he added
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