One person has died and two others have been rescued after a two-storey building collapsed in the early hours of Thursday at Aboru, in the Alimosho area of Lagos State.
The Lagos State Emergency Management Agency said the incident occurred at No. 42 Governors Road while the building was undergoing manual demolition. The structure suddenly collapsed during the demolition exercise, trapping three adult males beneath the rubble.
LASEMA said its Alpha Eagle Response Team was dispatched from the Cappa, Oshodi Response Unit at 12:56am and arrived at the scene within the projected response time. A coordinated search and rescue operation was subsequently launched at the site.
Two of the trapped men were rescued alive and given first aid by personnel of the Lagos State Ambulance Service before being taken to a nearby health facility for further medical treatment. The agency said one other adult male was recovered dead from beneath the collapsed structure.
The rescue operation was jointly conducted by LASEMA, the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service and LASAMBUS. The affected area was cordoned off to protect residents and provide emergency personnel with unhindered access to the site.
Community leaders and security agencies were also working with the emergency responders to ensure the operation was concluded safely.
LASEMA Permanent Secretary, Dr Olufemi Damilola Oke-Osanyintolu, urged residents and developers to comply with building regulations and engage certified professionals for demolition and construction work.
Oke-Osanyintolu urged the public to immediately report suspicious or unsafe building activities through the 767 and 112 toll-free emergency numbers. He reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to improving emergency response through capacity building, equipment and decentralised response units, with a target of achieving a 10-minute response time across Lagos.
