A two-storey building collapsed in the early hours of Monday at No. 54 Cole Street, near Cemetery Bus Stop by UBA Bank in Oyingbo, Lagos, leaving several residents injured and others feared trapped.
According to the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service (LSFRS), a distress call was received at about 12:20 a.m., prompting the immediate deployment of emergency responders from the Sari Iganmu Fire Station, who arrived on site within nine minutes to commence rescue operations.
Confirming the incident, Margaret Adeseye, Controller General of the LSFRS, said 15 persons have been rescued so far. “The rescued include seven adult males, four adult females, and four children, all sustaining varying degrees of injuries,” she said.
Incidents of building collapse have become alarmingly common in Lagos, Nigeria’s most populous city, often attributed to poor enforcement of safety standards, use of substandard materials, and disregard for structural warnings.
In September, a three-storey building under construction collapsed in the Alagomeji area of Yaba, collapsed. The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) confirmed the rescue of four persons, while others were reported trapped.
In one of the most tragic cases, a high-rise building in Ikoyi under construction collapsed in November 2021, claiming at least 42 lives.
Adeseye added that the victims were taken to the Federal Medical Centre, Ebute Metta, and the General Hospital, Odan, Lagos Island, for treatment.
Preliminary findings, according to her, suggest that the collapsed structure had earlier been marked as distressed but was still being occupied when it gave way.
“Rescue operations are still ongoing as our teams continue to search for possible survivors trapped under the rubble,” she added, assuring that the LSFRS, in conjunction with other emergency agencies, remains “fully mobilised to account for all affected individuals.”
