Residents of Cole Street in the Oyingbo area of Lagos State have revealed that occupants of a two-storey building, which collapsed on Sunday night, killing one person and injuring 26 others, ignored repeated warnings about the structure’s deteriorating condition.
When newsmen visited the scene on Monday, emergency officials, including operatives of the Lagos State Building Control Agency, the Red Cross, and the Lagos Neighbourhood Safety Corps, were still carrying out rescue operations amid piles of debris, damaged goods, and crushed motorcycles.
A shop owner in the building, Mrs. Adaeze, said she received a midnight call informing her that the structure had collapsed. She lamented that her goods, worth millions of naira, were trapped under the rubble.
“The government had warned us several times to vacate the place because the building was in distress, but the owner refused to cooperate,” she said. “Now all my goods are destroyed. I am appealing for government support to recover from this loss.”
Another resident, Habeeb Jamiu, said the collapse occurred shortly after a midnight rainfall. He recalled that residents were awakened by the cries of trapped occupants calling for help.
“We rushed out immediately and started rescuing people before emergency officials arrived,” Jamiu said. “Everyone in the area knew the building had cracks all over it. It was obvious the structure was weak.”
Similarly, another witness, Hakeem Ibrahim, confirmed that the building had long shown signs of distress. He said he joined in rescue efforts after seeing emergency vehicles rushing to the scene.
“The building was in a bad state,” Ibrahim said. “Some residents started pulling people out even before the rescue teams came. I fear some victims might still be under the rubble.”
At the hospital where some victims were taken, medical officials said the injured were not fit to speak with journalists.
Confirming the incident, the Controller General of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, Margaret Adeseye, said in a situation report that one person had been confirmed dead while 26 others were rescued alive.
“Update: One recovered dead as survivors rescued alive move to 26,” she stated, adding that the collapsed building had previously been marked as distressed.
The incident adds to the growing list of building collapses in Lagos this year. On September 25, six persons were rescued after a similar collapse in Mangoro, Alimosho Local Government Area, while two construction workers were pulled from the rubble of a fallen building in Ebute Metta on September 16.
These recurring incidents have continued to raise concerns about structural integrity and enforcement of building safety regulations in Lagos State.
