Shops, Goods Destroyed As Fire Guts Ajah Market In Lagos

Goods worth millions of naira were destroyed when fire razed a market and destroyed some shops in the Ajah area of the state, the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), confirmed on Monday.

LASEMA’s Permanent Secretary, Dr Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, disclosed this in a statement made available to newsmen on Monday in Lagos.

Oke-Osanyintolu noted that the incident occurred late Sunday night at Ajah Market close to Alesh Bus Stop in Lekki.

“LASEMA in response to distress calls from the 767 and112 toll-free lines at 09.30hrs, activated its Emergency Response Team from Lekki Base.

“On arrival at the incident scene at 22:10hrs, it was discovered that several shops and stores housing combustible materials were engulfed by fire.

“Investigations conducted revealed that the immediate cause of the fire could not yet be ascertained as at the time of writing this report.

“Fortunately, no casualties or injuries were recorded at the incident scene,” Oke-Osanyintolu stated.

He further revealed that the fire incident was curtailed by the agency and the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service which ensured that the inferno did not escalate to adjoining buildings.

“While fighting the fire, we were simultaneously trying to manage the hostile crowd as the two were the only primary responders at the incident scene.

“The fire has been successfully extinguished by the emergency responders at the incident scene and operation concluded,” he averred.