By Desire Emmanuel
A 103-year-old woman died while valuables worth millions of Nigeria were destroyed when a fire razed a building in Lagos on Friday, January 16.
Permanent Secretary of LASEMA, Dr Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, disclosed in a statement that the agency received distress calls at 11:43 a.m. through the 767/112 emergency lines, and activated response from its Onipanu base.
According to him, the responders arrived the scene at about 12:13 p.m. and found a residential bungalow with two attached shops fully engulfed by fire.
He said that the fire reportedly started from a room, before spreading to other parts of the building, adding that the exact cause was yet to be ascertained.
Oke-Osanyintolu said that LASEMA officials had conducted a risk assessment, cordoned off the area and implemented safety measures to prevent the fire from spreading to adjoining buildings.
He added that coordinated efforts by LASEMA Response Team, LASEMA Fire Unit and the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, successfully subdued the inferno.
He said that the fire affected eight room-and-parlour units, one self-contained mini flat, six shops and several properties.
The LASEMA boss said that the remains of the old woman were recovered and handed over to the family, while rescue, recovery and dampening down operations had been concluded.
He listed responders at the scene to include: lLASEMA teams, Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, Nigeria Police Force, Lagos Neighbourhood Safety Corps and officials of Lagos Mainland Local Government.
