One person has died while two others were rescued after a two-storey building undergoing manual demolition collapsed in the Aboru area of Lagos State.
The Permanent Secretary of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday, saying the incident occurred around 12:56am at No. 42, Governors Road, Aboru, in the Alimosho Local Government Area of the state.
Oke-Osanyintolu said the agency’s Alpha Eagle Response Team was deployed to the scene immediately after receiving a distress call.
Preliminary investigations indicated that the building collapsed while workers were manually carrying out demolition activities.
He added, “On arrival, first responders confirmed that the structure had collapsed during demolition activities, with workers trapped under the debris.”
The Permanent Secretary said LASEMA activated the state’s Emergency Response Plan and assumed responsibility for the rescue operation while coordinating other emergency agencies at the scene.
According to him, two adult males were pulled out alive from the rubble. They were given first aid by personnel of the Lagos State Ambulance Service before being transported to a nearby health facility for further treatment.
However, one adult male was found dead beneath the collapsed structure.
“Through a coordinated search and rescue operation, two adult males were extricated alive from the rubble and were promptly administered life-saving first aid by personnel of the Lagos State Ambulance Service, LASAMBUS, before being moved to a nearby health facility for further medical attention.
“Sadly, one adult male was recovered dead from beneath the collapsed structure. The agency commiserates with the family of the deceased and prays for the quick recovery of the injured,” Oke-Osanyintolu noted.
The rescue operation involved LASEMA, the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service and LASAMBUS.
Authorities also cordoned off the area to protect residents and provide emergency personnel with a safer environment to continue their operations.
Oke-Osanyintolu advised residents and property developers to adhere strictly to building regulations and ensure that only qualified professionals are engaged for construction and demolition activities.
He said, “Any suspicious or unsafe building activity should be reported immediately to the Agency through the 767 and 112 toll-free emergency numbers.”
He further stated that the Lagos State Government remained committed to strengthening emergency response operations across the state, including the decentralisation of response units with the aim of achieving a 10-minute response time.
The latest incident comes after another building collapse in Lagos claimed several lives. PUNCH Metro reported on June 25 that eight people were killed and 26 others rescued after a three-storey building collapsed in the Alakija area of the state.
Oke-Osanyintolu had said the building, situated on Old Ojo Road near Alakija Bus Stop, off the Lagos-Badagry Expressway in Satellite Town, collapsed at about 11:37am, triggering a major emergency response involving several agencies.
