Ogun shut down two industries over fatal accidents

The Ogun State Government has shut down two industries – Quantum Steel Industry, Ogijo, Sagamu Local Council, and Xinfeng Plastics Limited along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway – due to industrial accidents that resulted in fatalities.

While Quantum Steel was shut down due to an industrial explosion that resulted in fatalities, with some victims still hospitalised, Xinfeng Plastics was equally closed down after a machine operator, Ishaku Monday, lost his life due to electrocution.

While shutting down the two companies, the Special Adviser to the Governor on the Ogun State Environmental Protection Agency (OGEPA), who also doubles as the Chairman of the State Taskforce on Environmental Compliance and Enforcement, Alhaji Farook Akintunde, said the government decided to shut down the companies to investigate the remote and immediate causes of the unfortunate incidents and proffer solutions to avert future occurrences.

He said, “As a government, we are determined to conduct credible and diligent investigations, including inviting external safety experts to get to the root cause of these incidents in the overriding public interest and safety.

“What is even more painful is that despite the state government’s regular visits to these companies, just like others statewide, to educate them on the need to adhere strictly to safety procedures, such incidents still occurred within their production lines, resulting in fatalities. Hence, the need to close them down.”

Akintunde added that the two companies will remain shut until investigations are concluded and new safety protocols are entrenched.

He also warned other companies in the state to prioritise the safety of their workers, especially those in production lines, as the state government will not only close down any erring company involved in such occurrences but will also blacklist them.

In the meantime, the state government has also closed down two other companies: Wemco Nigeria Limited at Magboro along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway and Beautiful Fibre at Ogere, also along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.

Wemco Nigeria Limited was found guilty of obstructing state officials from performing their official duty of investigating an erosion dispute between them and their immediate community development, while Beautiful Fibre was found guilty of exposing its workers to hazardous chemicals by not providing them with Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), despite several warnings from state government officials during routine visits to the company.

The two companies will also remain shut until they comply with government directives.