Fire outbreak at Lagos airport disrupts operations

Flight operations at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos were yesterday halted when fire broke out in the terminal.

The fire incident, due to electrical faults, engulfed the Avio Bridge E-54 wing, causing panic among the passengers and workers.

Firefighters of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) promptly responded to put off the fire before it caused major damage at Nigeria’s busiest airport.

The outbreak disrupted flights in and out of the airport for close to an hour, with spiral effects still felt till the evening.

General Manager, FAAN Corporate Affairs Department, Mrs. Henrietta Yakubu said the fire was caused by a spark at the Finger Main Distribution Board, E-Finger of the Airport.

Yakubu said electricity had been restored in the terminal shortly after the outbreak was extinguished, with engineers successfully correcting all defaults to restore normalcy in affected areas.

“While assuring airport users of safety and security at the airports, FAAN wishes to apologise to passengers, airlines and the general public for the inconvenience caused by this interruption,” she said.

One ground sources, however, said that the outbreak might not be unconnected with the recent expansion of the terminal and alleged use of inferior cables by the contractor.

Last month, the D-wing Departure of the international airport was engulfed by fire.

Four days later, another fire broke out, which affected the Skye Bank office at the airport and other tenants at the terminal.