3 killed as buildings collapse in Lagos

Three people lost their lives on the Lagos Island on Wednesday after a three-storey building collapsed on a bungalow beside it.

It was learnt that among those killed were a four year-old girl, a 75- year-old man, identified simply as Baba Olorunosebi, and a trader.

The girl, who sustained injury to her eye, was said to have died on her way to the hospital.

According to eyewitnesses, 11 people were rescued from the rubble of the collapsed building by residents. Among the 11, five of them were little children and had been taken to Massey Children Hospital for medical attention.

The three-storey building on Alli Street was said to have cracked and collapsed around 10pm on Wednesday and fallen on the six bedroom bungalow, killing the old man.

The trader, was said to have been sleeping in his shop on the ground floor of the three-storey building when it came down.

Residents told newsmen that the building had earlier been marked for demolition by officials of the Lagos State Building Control Agency.

It was learnt that the collapsed building, which belonged to a late white cap chief, had been marked for demolition three years ago when another structure in the same area collapsed.

The General Manager, LASBCA, Mrs. Animashaun Odunayo, however said the agency had yet to identify who owned the house.

She said the building, which was recently renovated, had only been identified as distressed on Wednesday.

She said, “We received a distress call about the building and we visited the place on Wednesday. We sealed the place and told the occupants to evacuate immediately. We also sealed two other buildings on Adeniji Adele. We could not have demolished the building immediately because there is a process for doing things.

“Lagos Island residents are of the habit of turning a deaf ear to warnings. Immediately we left the area, people broke the seals and moved back into the building.”