The Lagos State Emergency
Management Agency (LASEMA) says some form of explosives caused the fire
outbreak at a section of Kairo market in Oshodi-Isolo LGA of Lagos state.
The inferno, which torched over
90 structures, started around 8pm on Thursday.
The fabric section of the market
was the most affected, with millions worth of goods destroyed.
Giving an update on the incident,
Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, director-general of LASEMA, said “initial investigations
suggest that some form of explosives/accelerants were used; indicating some
foul play”.
According to him, 66 shops, 22
containerised shops and four offices were affected.
Oke-Osanyintolu said officials of
the agency were attacked while trying to put out the fire.
“Members of the public sabotaged
our efforts by cutting our hoses in the middle to save their individual shops
which affected the overall efforts of our personnel and damage to our
equipment,” he said.
“Some members of our team were
attacked with several sustaining injuries that required medical attention.
“It is of note that in the course
of attempting to discharge their duties, first responders are being attacked.
The agency intends to engage with the market authorities for sensitization on
fire prevention and modalities of cooperation in such incidents.
“The agency frowns on the assault
and mistreatment of its personnel and will be carrying out an investigation.”
However, Hakeem Odumosu, the
state commissioner of police, says there is no truth to the claim that the fire
was caused by an explosive.
“The rumour going around that it was a bomb
should be dismissed,” Odumosu said.
“The tension is already high in
the country and we should not make inflammatory statements.
“That’s why I am here with my
technical team, the bomb experts in the police and they have gone round and no
proof the fire was caused by a bomb. It has been ruled out that there was a
bomb explosion here. No bomb was found here. So people should allow the fire
service and the police to conduct their investigation and when the report from
their laboratory comes out, we will make a statement.”
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