A major fire outbreak has occurred at the Great Nigeria Insurance House, a multi-storey plaza located on Martins Street in the Lagos Island area of Lagos State, with emergency responders currently battling to contain the blaze.
The building, which is largely used as a warehouse for clothing materials, was reportedly engulfed by fire at about 5 p.m. on Wednesday.
The Permanent Secretary of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, confirmed that the fire started from an office on the fourth floor of the plaza before spreading to other levels.
According to him, the cause of the fire has yet to be determined, while rescue and firefighting operations are still ongoing, making it impossible to immediately ascertain the number of casualties.
“Upon the arrival of the Shark Response Team at the scene, a 22-storey building known as the Great Nigeria Insurance House was found to be engulfed by fire,” Oke-Osanyintolu said.
“Preliminary investigations revealed that the fire started from one of the offices on the fourth floor and quickly spread to other parts of the floor, escalating upwards to the sixth floor. At the moment, the number of casualties cannot be confirmed as operations are still in progress.”
However, the Controller-General of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, Margaret Adeseye, said no casualties had been recorded so far.
In a separate statement, Adeseye disclosed that the fire affected up to the fifth floor of the 25-storey building, noting that it originated on the fifth floor and spread downward.
“The affected building is mainly used for warehouse storage and the sale of clothing materials, with some corporate offices and shops within the premises. There has been no record of casualties as firefighting continues,” she stated.
