Two Children Rescued From Kwara Collapsed Building

Two children were rescued after a two-storey residential building collapsed in Ilorin, the Kwara State capital, on Thursday.

The incident, which reportedly occurred at about 9:10 a.m. on Ajegunle Street, off Sabo-Line in the Isale area, involved a six-flat building.

The spokesperson of the Kwara State Fire Service, Hassan Adekunle, in a statement, confirmed that the two children were initially trapped in the debris but were rescued before firefighters arrived at the scene.

“It was reported that two children, Ahmad (8 years) and Hussainat (10 years) were trapped but were rescued and taken to the nearest hospital before the arrival of the Fire Service,” Adekunle said.

“Firefighters immediately commenced salvage operations, recovering essential belongings including clothes, electronics, food items, and important documents from accessible areas of the building,” he added.

The Fire Service, however, raised concerns about the safety of nearby structures and recommended urgent preventive measures to avert further disasters, following an on-site assessment.

“Following an on-site assessment, the Kwara State Fire Service recommended to the Disaster Management Department of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps to seal off the collapsed structure and issue a seven-day ultimatum to occupants of an adjacent building found to be structurally unsafe and unfit for habitation,” the statement noted.

The Disaster Management unit of the NSCDC was said to have sealed off the affected building and enforced an evacuation notice on the neighbouring structure.

“It was further gathered that the caretaker of the collapsed building had previously been notified about the deteriorating condition of the structure prior to the incident,” he said.

Addressing property owners and residents, the Director of the Fire Service, Alabi Muhammed, who was present at the scene to supervise operations and coordinate with other emergency responders, urged them to carry out regular structural integrity assessments of buildings, heed early warning signs such as cracks and weaknesses, and take immediate action when defects are identified.