Fire guts 47 shops, church in Ibereko Sawmill, Badagry area of Lagos

No fewer than 47 shops in Ibereko Sawmill, Badagry, Lagos State, were ravaged by fire which broke out around 3.30pm on Saturday.

It was learnt that machines and processed planks estimated at millions of naira were lost to the inferno, which also affeceted a church in the area.

PUNCH Metro gathered that the fire was caused by an electric surge, and was aided by a chemical substance in one of the shops, which caused the fire to spread to other shops and the church.

It was said to have been put out around 6pm by a combined team of the Lagos State Fire Service and the state’s emergency management agency. It was gathered that no life was lost to the inferno.

While lamenting the incident, shop owners described their losses as phenomenal, saying they had no idea on how to find their feet back to the business.

One of them, Isiaq Ibrahim, said, “Two of my machines and planks that had been processed were burnt by the fire. We attempted to remove some of our property, but the fire was much. I lost about N3m property. About 50 shops were destroyed. It was the chemical we normally apply on the planks that aided the fire. But we thank God nobody died.”

A resident of the area, who identified himself only as Segun, said some people sustained minor injuries while scampering to safety.

“We were all confused. We had the fear that the fire might spread to residential buildings. So, we fled our houses. There was no major casualty, except some people who were injured while running,” he said.

The Director of the fire service in the state, Rasaq Fadipe, could not be reached for comments as calls put across to his telephone rang out.

The General Manager, LASEMA, Mr. Michael Akindele, confirmed the incident.

He said, “We received a distress call around 4.20pm and our men, firefighters, and some other agencies in the state arrived at the area on time with the necessary equipment to handle the incident. About 47 shops were razed. A church adjacent to the sawmill was also affected. However, no life was lost. The fire was put out around 6pm.

“We have already carried out hazard assessment. After compilation, it will be presented to the governor for necessary action.”

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About Unknown

Deji Sadiq, a.k.a DEJI OF LAGOS is a LASU trained Economist turned freelance journalist, a Blogger, an information strategist, a public affairs analyst and a committed activist with a passion for equal opportunities.