Lagos, Nigeria building collapse: at least four fatalities and several trapped

This is the second such incident in Lagos in three months with another one in November 2021 leading to the death of at least 40 people. The incident happened around 3 p.m. on Saturday.

A building under construction collapsed on Saturday in Yaba, Lagos, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has said and one more body was recovered from the rubble. The recovered body, found by rescue officials at around 1 a.m., increased the death toll to four. Three bodies were pulled out on Saturday.

At least five workers are still trapped under the rubble of the latest incident while two people have been rescued, NEMA added.

“The building had displayed potential failure signs on Thursday and when one of the neighbors called their attention to it, they ignored him,” Ibrahim Farinloye, NEMA acting zonal coordinator, southwest, said.

Mr. Farinloye added that traffic gridlock frustrated the mobilization of heavy-duty equipment to the accident site.

Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, the director-general of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), said the state’s emergency responders are “on ground” at the incident site.

“Recovery operation is ongoing for other victims,” he added.

In a similar event in November, at least 40 people died when a high-rise under construction collapsed in the Ikoyi area of the state.

The Lagos State government said it has arrested the developer of the three-storey building under construction that collapsed at No. 16 Akanbi Crescent, Onike Area, Lagos, on Saturday afternoon.

The State Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Idris Salako, in a statement, said: “the government moved in swiftly to minimize impact at the site around 3.30 p.m. on Saturday.”

“Preliminary findings indicated that the site had been sealed off twice by the Lagos State Building Control Agency in 2021 for non-compliance with building regulations, after which the site was abandoned.

“However, the developer later broke the government seal, sneaked into the site and recommenced construction without official authorization”.

“As at 9:00p.m., one person had been pulled out alive, while two deaths were recorded.