*Discrepancies in ‘stop work order’ documents by State Govt
*I wrote letter to developer before the incident, says Baale
*Building owner on the run — LASBCA boss
It was a tragic Sunday night for the residents of Adeleye Street, Lady Lark in the Bariga area of Lagos, as two children died while three others sustained injuries, following the collapse of a building in the area.
Reports gathered by Quest Times reveal that the three injured are currently receiving treatment at an undisclosed hospital in the state.
In the last 12 months, Lagos has been plagued with several building collapse incidents leading to casualties.
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In November 2021, at least 44 people died when a high-rise building crumbled in Ikoyi.
In May, eight bodies were recovered after a three-storey building collapsed in Ebute-Metta.
Another building in the Ago Palace Way area of Lagos State collapsed on May 7.
There was also a report of a building collapse in July at Oke Arin street, Ilupeju, Palm Grove.
The recent development
Speaking to Quest Times, Aremu Lawrence, one of the occupants, narrated how the incident happened, against the widely circulated reports on social media.
“It (the building collapse) happened between 9 – 10pm yesterday (Sunday). I, my wife, and my son were inside. So, I was pressed and had to go outside to ease myself.
“I don’t know what prompted me to go back when I heard a loud bang (from the falling debris). So, I heard one of the people (a lady’s voice) shouting help! help!
“We (neighbours) were able to rescue her just before the arrival of the LASBCA and other response team from the Lagos State Government,” he said.
According to him, all efforts to rescue others trapped in the debris proved abortive as the pillar was too strong for them to carry.
“Iya Ayo (the victim) lost her only son to the collapse. She is currently receiving treatment alongside others injured as a result of the incident,” he added.
Watch video below;
How negligence, and noncompliance to codes caused the collapse
Quest Times also spoke to another resident who revealed some vital information about the 2-storey building that collapsed.
“I have been hearing some movements (vibrations) on the roof (of the affected building) since 2pm yesterday before the incident happened. And we called the attention of the workers over there (pointing to the house where the septic tank was positioned) to it. They apologised.
“Some hours later, I went back to challenge them to stop disturbing the residents and left for my work.
“On getting home, I saw that the three septic tanks on the pillar over there (pointing to the next compound) have collapsed on this building (pointing to the affected building).
“Each of the tanks contains about 3,000 litres of water. The depth of the pillar (where the water tanks were placed) is not up to 2 ft. They were placed on top of a WC (soakaway) over there.
“The texture of the materials used for the building is light, hence, the reason for the collapse,” Mr Ayinde Adedoyin told Quest Times.
Reacting, the Baale of Mafowoku, Alh. Ariyo-Osu, said he wrote some letters demanding to see the owner of the house before the incident happened but the latter did not honour them.
“I wrote letters to the engineer constructing the building to tell the owner to see me but they thought I wanted to demand money from them and did not bother to see me,” he emphatically stated.
Also, the General Manager, Lagos State Building Control Agency (LASBCA), Arch. Gbolahan Oki, disclosed that the owner of the 2-storey building has been on the run since the incident happened.
He also claimed that the State Government had sealed the building before the collapse but Quest Times further findings revealed that there are some discrepancies in the date written on the documents showing the “stop work order.”
On the document, the date was altered from 22nd of August, 2022 to 19th of August, 2022 as seen below;
This, however, did not corroborate the claims made by the LASBCA GM who said the seal was done before the incident occurred.
Quest Times findings also revealed negligence on the part of the government to take necessary action that would have averted the disaster.
A resident who spoke on condition of anonymity, accused the Babajide Sanwo-Olu-led government of “not living up to its responsibility in terms of inspecting dilapidated or substandard buildings in the state, compared to previous administrations that are more proactive to situations of such and not just being reactive.”
