The collapsed three storey building at Oloto Street has been levelled by a back hoe, but federal and state emergency rescue agencies are still disputing casualty figures at the scene. The building, located inside a crowded neighbourhood at Ebute Meta, caved in at about 2.35 a.m. Thursday. Minutes after the collapse, both the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA, and the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, LASEMA, mobilized to the site. “We moved in swiftly, promptly, and effectively,” said Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, LASEMA’s General Manager. However, the disparity in the casualty figures released by NEMA and LASEMA highlights the chasm in the operations of both agencies. While NEMA said that seven people, including two children aged 2 and 4, were rescued from the rubble, as well as seven dead bodies recovered; LASEMA said that ten people were injured while four, including a child, died in the collapse. When Mr. Oke-Osanyintolu was confronted with NEMA’s different figures, he dismissed it with a wave of the hand. “It is not so,” he said. “We keep on saying it, NEMA is our secondary responder. It is the primary responder that is supposed to give you the exact figure. We are in a better place to inform you people what is going on. “We work hand in hand with NEMA, they are our secondary responder. But there is no how a secondary responder will know more than the primary responder,” Mr. Oke- Osanyintolu added. Occupants of the collapsed building said that they heard cracks in their homes at about 1 a.m. and evacuated themselves from the building. One hour later, they returned only for the house to cave in 30 minutes later. A pregnant woman and a one and a half year old boy were among the dead, as armed police officers struggled to fight off hoodlums carting away properties, eye witnesses said. The owner of the building is still on the run, witnesses said. Ibrahim Farinloye, NEMA South-West Spokesperson, told PREMIUM TIMES that an occupant defied a directive to evacuate the building as emergency agencies arrived. The young man tried to rescue his father – he lost his limbs as well as his father in the process, Mr. Farinloye said. “Most of these houses are not modern houses, they are old houses the people inherited from their fathers,” said Mr. Farinloye. “Over 300 buildings have been marked for refurbishment and renovation,” he added. Wale Ahmed, the Lagos State Commissioner for Special Duties, told PREMIUM TIMES that the Lagos State government had constituted a “committee of experts” to proffer solution to building collapse in the state. “So I think that we should wait for them to come out with recommendation then the state government would discuss it and know what to do,” Mr. Ahmed, who was at the site of the incident, said. However, the commissioner refused to answer questions on the responsibilities of the committee or when they would present the recommendation. “We are still working here now, if we are going to be granting interviews, that will be later,” Mr. Ahmed said.
Posted on: Thu, 11 Jul 2013 14:52:00 +0000
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