Nigerian Emergency Agency, NEMA Laments Lack Of Water

NEMA requests cooperation in creating a water supply following the destruction of three structures in the Lagos market by fire.

The lack of a local water source was the reason given by the Lagos zone of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) for the escalation of a fire event that razed down four structures in the Idumota section of Lagos Island Local Government section.

On Wednesday, March 20, NEMA State Coordinator Ibrahim Farinloye disclosed this information.

According to Farinloye, the emergency personnel' attempts to successfully control the fire and stop its spread were hampered by their inability to obtain water.

He underlined that there were no water sources close by, thus fire trucks had to make several journeys in search of water.

“The major problem we had today was the lack of a water source. We have over 10 firefighting appliances, but there is nowhere in Lagos Island where we can source water.

“So, each of these firefighting appliances had to go about three to four times to fetch water. Julius Berger also had to supply us with 30,000 litres of water. Both the Federal Fire Service and the State Fire Service were on the ground, but there was not enough water,” Farinloye stated.

He added that two of the impacted buildings would be evaluated by the Lagos Building Control Agency to see if they were still safe for occupants to be trading.

In the meanwhile, Farinloye has asked vendors to work with the government to build a water supply close to the marketplace and to prepare fire marshals for prompt action in the event of repeat mishaps.

The Lagos State incident and Rescue Service Director, Margaret Adeseye, provided an update on the cause of the incident, attributing it to the vendors' careless behavior and the availability of combustible goods in the area.

“The root cause of the fire has been determined to be negligence, compounded by the presence of combustible materials within the vicinity. The fire quickly spread to neighboring properties, including houses 47 and 51, where various goods such as decorations and lighters were stored.

“Prompt action by firefighting teams prevented further escalation and facilitated the extinguishing of the flames,” Adeseye explained.

She emphasized how many agencies worked together to manage the issue, including the Nigeria Police Force, LNSC, CBD Men, NPA Fire Service, LASEMA, LASAMBUS, Federal Fire Service, and Julius Berger.

It might have reminded you that during the catastrophe, one of the impacted buildings fell.

The Nnamdi Azikiwe and Docemo crossroads in Idumota saw three buildings completely destroyed by fire, which then spread to home number 53.