Not less than five people have been confirmed dead in an early morning gas explosion that occurred at Baruwa, Alimosho area of Lagos on Thursday.
In a statement by the Director-General of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Dr Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, the incident occurred around 6:00 am, destroying several properties.
According to Osanyintolu, the agency’s emergency response unit has been deployed in the area, and has been able to identified and curtail the gas emission, adding that investigations indicate that the incident was an entirely avoidable incident caused by carelessness on the part of the operators.
So far, five fatalities have been recovered and 8 casualties with major burns who have been transferred to the Gbagada General Hospital Burns Unit.
The agency also stated that 25 houses damaged of which 10 were classified as “Severely Affected,” 16 Shops Razed by the fire, one Private Primary School, one hotel were affected by the fire.
Also affected are three Vehicles comprising of a pickup truck, tricycle and motorcycle.
Osanyintolu added that clearing and securing of the affected areas is presently on-going by joint teams of responders, also urging Lagosian to always report unsavoury and dangerous practices within their neighbour hoods to the authorities.
