On Monday, rescuers were able to free nine unidentified women who had been trapped after a storey building in Akinwunmi Street, Mende, in the Maryland region of Lagos State, sank as a result of heavy rain.
Ibrahim Farinloye, the Lagos Territorial Coordinator for the National Emergency Management Agency, issued a statement confirming the development.
He claimed that after getting a distress call about the issue, agency representatives were sent to rescue the victims.
He said, “NEMA received a distressed alert on a sinking storey building where nine people are said to be trapped. The building is located at 47 Akinwunmi street, Akinwunmi North Estate, Mende, Maryland, Ikeja.
“The torrential rainfall, which lasted for about four hours in the early hours of the day, flooded lots of communities in Lagos State. NEMA advance team upon close observations called for more reinforcement of personnel.”
He added, “The landlord of the building had used a ladder to escape, but NEMA questioned him for failure to contact emergency responders, but someone from one of the trapped victim’s offices contacted NEMA.
“The agencies on the ground now are LASEMA, Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, and Police Disaster Management Unit. The rescue activities have commenced, and all the nine trapped ladies have been successfully rescued.”
See photos from the rescue below:
