- China-based clothier dies in Balogun Market fire
- Plaza collapse trapped traders during inferno
- Three bodies recovered, eight others rescued
- Families accuse responders of slow rescue effort
A tragic Lagos fire outbreak at Balogun Market has left a China-based trader and two other adults dead after part of a high-rise plaza collapsed during rescue operations on Lagos Island.
The victims were recovered from the rubble of the Great Nigeria Insurance House, a 25-storey commercial plaza on Martins Street that was razed by fire earlier in the week.
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Among the dead was Obum, a cloth dealer based in China who reportedly returned to Nigeria for the festive season. The other victims were an adult male and an adult female.
The fire reportedly began on the fourth floor of the building on Wednesday before spreading rapidly to the sixth floor and later engulfing other sections of the structure and nearby buildings within the busy Balogun Market axis.
During the inferno, a detached part of the plaza collapsed, trapping traders and market assistants who were attempting to evacuate goods.
Confirming the incident, the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) said three bodies were recovered from the collapsed section.
“An adult female was extricated dead from the collapsed structure and handed over to her husband. One adult male was recovered with severe mutilation, while another was retrieved with the body intact,” LASEMA spokesperson Nosa Okunbor said.
The agency added that eight injured males, including a firefighter, were rescued and taken to hospital, while five others with minor injuries were treated at the scene and discharged.
A source within the agency disclosed that the two male victims were recovered on Friday morning, hours apart.
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A trader at the market, Zacheaus Afolayan, later confirmed that one of the recovered bodies was that of Obum.
“When the body was released, we realised it was Obum. His body was intact, and his family has taken him to Anambra for burial,” Afolayan said.
According to him, Obum was evacuating his goods when the weakened section of the plaza collapsed.
“He had moved almost everything and went back for the last items. That was when the building gave way and fell on his shop,” he explained.
Afolayan revealed that Obum made desperate phone calls from under the rubble in the early hours of Thursday.
“He called around 2am, begging us not to let him die. He said he had children and no one to take care of them. He later called again in the afternoon, but his voice was much weaker,” he added.
Meanwhile, relatives of other missing persons have appealed for more manpower and equipment at the scene.
One of them, Fatima Ibitoye, said two of her brothers were still trapped four days after the collapse.
“They only have one excavator, and it keeps breaking down. That is why the rescue is slow. We need urgent help,” she cried.
Another relative, Kayode, said parts of the building were still burning, making rescue efforts difficult.
“The heat is too much, and firefighters are no longer supplying water. Our people are still under the rubble,” he said.
Responding, the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service said firefighters remain on ground and will not abandon the operation.
“We will stay till ground zero. What we have now are casualties, not trapped persons. We will be the last to leave the scene,” spokesperson Shakiru Amodu said.
