Three people have died following the collapse of a building on Borno Way, Alagomeji, Yaba, Lagos State, the second such incident in the area in three years.

The collapse occurred at 333 Borno Way, where three bodies were recovered and four people were rescued alive from the rubble.

On November 16, 2023, a one-storey building at 34 Oloto Street, Borno Way, off Freeman Street, Oyingbo, had also collapsed, killing an 80-year-old woman. That incident was attributed to the use of substandard construction materials.

An unnamed emergency official, commenting on the latest incident, said: “The cause is very clear. The materials used are poor and inferior, from the pillar to other parts of the building, nothing was well done. The concrete is not strong. The building collapsed around 8:30 p.m. on Friday, trapping several occupants beneath the rubble.”

Emergency responders from the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service (LSFRS), and other organisations rushed to the scene for search and rescue operations.

Acting Head of NEMA Lagos Operations Office, Ibitayo Adenike, confirmed the casualty figures: “Four persons were rescued alive and three bodies were recovered from the rubble. All the victims were male adults.

“We don’t anticipate finding any more bodies as the person rescued on Friday night informed us that there were only seven individuals in the building.”