By Olasunkanmi Akoni
It was a sad day for the residents of Lawanson, Surulere, Lagos, where members of a family of five were burnt to death in the early hours of Wednesday following a fire outbreak in their house at Michael Ogun Street, Obele, Lawanson.

Gov. Ambode

Reports said that victims of the inferno where a grandmother, mother, father and two children, a baby and a girl. “It is an unfortunate incident, it is a very sad day in this area, a whole family roasted in a midnight fire, this is sad”, an eye witness lamented.

Fire incidents like the Surulere case have virtually become a daily occurrence in Lagos, along with similar accidents. Reports indicate that over 25 fire incidents have occurred across the Lagos metropolis in the last two weeks out of which 12 happened within 24 hours.

According to the Lagos State Fire Service quarterly review, a total of about 18 lives and property worth N4 billion were lost in 859 fire incidents within three months in the state in 2014. According to the report, 36 persons were rescued, while property worth about N60 billion were saved in the incidents.

The Director of Lagos Fire Service, Rasak Fadipe, who confirmed all these records, attributed most of the tragedies to what he described as human errors, especially as they occurred during the rainy season when such disasters are known to be less frequent.

Fadipe urged the public to know that, “there is no small fire incident because every outbreak is followed by destruction of property and are sometimes life-threatening.

According to Fadipe, “within two weeks, there were fire incidents at a six-floor building on Lagos Island, an outbreak of fire involving a three-floor building at number 33 Balogun street Lagos Island, among other incidents.

“The highpoint of the whole thing is the unprecedented record in   number of emergencies received within 24 hours that occurred between last Sunday and Monday. We received 12 emergency calls, this is alarming and unacceptable.

Be safety conscious, Ambode urges residents. Apparently worried by the reports of incessant fire outbreaks,  Lagos State Governor, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, has stressed the need for residents to be more safety conscious in handling sensitive materials such as fuel and electrical systems, among others in homes and offices.
Ambode made the appeal in statement yesterday, signed by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Information and Strategy, Mr. Fola Adeyemi.

He said had become pertinent to encourage the people to imbibe the culture of safety following recent increase in cases of fire incidents across the state resulting in loss of lives and property.

According to the Governor, “the state government has noticed with regret, cases of fire incidents caused by power outages, particularly at night as a result of high voltage supply from power Distribution Companies, DISCOs.

“The Lagos state government is deeply worried about these avoidable incidences which negatively impact on the socio-economic activities and lives of Lagosians.”

He therefore, urged residents to be vigilant particularly at night, when they go to bed and also ensure they switch off all electrical appliances.
Ambode also urged residents to ensure that they do not store inflammable materials such as petroleum products, combustible materials and gasoline containers in their homes or garages as well as put off candles and lanterns whenever they go to bed.

He advised residents to take additional safety measures which include, rectify electrical problems that can cause fire,   avoid joining of cables and naked wires in homes, use extension cords as recommended and do not overload them, do not place power cords under rugs or coil them up while in use.

The statement enjoined residents to imbibe safety consciousness, as well as educate the younger ones on all safety measures in order to reduce to the barest minimum the incidences of fire in the state.

In case of emergency, he urged residents to call: 767 and 112, toll free.