Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service has confirmed eight deaths from a fire incident that occurred on December 24 at the 25-storey Great Nigeria Insurance House on Lagos Island.
Controller General of the agency, Mrs Margaret Adeseye, disclosed this in a statement on Saturday, while giving a comprehensive update on the incident.
Adeseye said the Lagos State government has begun a controlled demolition of the damaged structure.
“Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, following a second on-site assessment on January 2, approved the constitution of a Technical Recovery and Demolition Committee.
“The committee, chaired by the Commissioner for Special Duties and Inter-Governmental Relations, is responsible for developing and implementing a safe demolition plan for the affected building and its immediate surroundings, with public and responder safety as top priorities, ” she said.
She said emergency responders remain fully deployed at the scene alongside sister agencies.
“The site is highly sensitive and volatile, with substantial rubble still in place and intermittent pockets of fire burning within the debris.
“These fires are caused by combustible materials such as textiles and clothing stockpiled inside the building, rather than the building’s structural components,” she said.
She noted that although the pocket fires did not pose immediate danger to surrounding areas, “any rushed or uncoordinated removal of debris could destabilise the already weakened structure.
“The building’s foundation has been severely compromised by the fire, rendering it structurally unsafe and unfit for use, while some rubble may currently be providing unintended structural support.
“For this reason, all operations are being carried out in line with global disaster response best practices, where rescuer safety comes first, incidents of this scale can take days, weeks or even months to fully resolve.
“As part of public safety measures, the affected market and surrounding areas remain closed, with only authorised first responders allowed within the cordoned zone,” she said
Adeseye urged the public to remain calm and cooperative, as their safety is directly linked to the safety of emergency personnel on the ground.
According to her, an information centre has been established at the site to address enquiries from families, stakeholders and members of the public.
On casualties, she added that eight fatalities had been recorded, with five victims identified and three yet-to-be identified.
The service boss said 13 persons had been successfully rescued, while search operations continue in safer sections of the debris to ensure that no one remains trapped.
She said preliminary observations by emergency officials pointed to serious fire safety violations within the building.
“These include overstocking of combustible materials from floor to ceiling with little or no ventilation, absence of proper fire safety infrastructure and unsafe market practices such as the use of generators within buildings and shops constructed around transformers,” she said.
She warned that such hazardous conditions could lead to heat build-up and spontaneous ignition even without an external fire trigger.
She said drawing global comparisons, similar large-scale fire recovery operations had occurred worldwide, including the World Trade Center incident in New York, where recovery efforts extended over several months.
She reassured residents that the actions being taken were deliberate, professional and safety-driven, and that operations would continue until ground zero is fully reached, all risks are eliminated and the incident is conclusively resolved.
Adeseye thanked Lagos residents for their patience, understanding and cooperation, reiterating that a safe rescuer ensures a safe rescue.
