• Blaze destroys 20 shops as traders allege lack of water
It was a shattered dream for traders at the popular Nigerian Army Shopping Complex, Bolade-Oshodi, also known as Arena, after a section of the market was engulfed in fire.
The affected section consists of five 40-foot container blocks arranged in two rows, housing about 20 shops. The area is mainly used for the storage and sale of clothing materials stocked in bales.
The Arena fire occurred eight days after a train collision in the same area, where a driver and others narrowly escaped death. The incident also came as fire continued to damage what remains of the 25-storey Great Nigeria Insurance Company building on Martins Street, Lagos Island.
Fire crews from the Bolade, Ilupeju, Ikeja and Alausa fire stations prevented the blaze from spreading beyond the affected section.
Controller of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service (LSFRS), Margaret Adeseye, said: “The fire has been confined to the affected section and curtailed. The situation is firmly under control, and there is no risk of the fire spreading to other parts of the market.”
When The Guardian visited the scene yesterday, LSFRS personnel were still battling the fire, while individuals believed to be workers or shop owners attempted to salvage clothing from the affected shops.
It was alleged that a trader who secured a N200 million facility from a bank for the season was affected by the blaze.
Some traders, who pleaded for anonymity, lamented that they were entering the New Year in agony and expressed concern over recurring fire incidents in Lagos markets.
A trader who did not want her name in print said: “About 20 shops were burnt, like what happened on Lagos Island, but the difference is that no life was lost. Millions worth of goods and money have been destroyed.”
Another trader said: “The fire spread so fast because the shops contained clothes. I broke several doors to help in putting out the fire.
“Unfortunately, there was no water in Arena Market, and that contributed to the spread. A shop owner had just offloaded goods a few hours before the incident and lost everything, including money kept in the shop.”
Meanwhile, an X user, Sotos Okonkwo, alleged yesterday that 15 bodies were pulled from the 25-storey Great Nigeria Insurance Company building, while others remained trapped.
Another user, Nedu Ani, alleged that on Tuesday night, families hired some individuals to search for trapped victims.
He claimed that six bodies were sighted within minutes of entry and some were identified, adding that the individuals demanded N600,000 before embarking on the search.
Efforts to confirm these claims were unsuccessful, as the Permanent Secretary of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Dr Oluwafemi Oke-Osanyintolu, did not respond to calls.
The inferno at the Great Nigeria Insurance Company building broke out at about 6:00 p.m. on Christmas Eve, December 25, 2025.
