An early morning fire has destroyed 17 shops at Sabo Market in the Ikorodu area of Lagos State.
The incident occurred around 1:10 a.m. on Tuesday, prompting a swift response from the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) and the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, which successfully contained the blaze before it spread to other parts of the market.
LASEMA spokesperson, Olawale Afolabi, said preliminary investigations suggested the fire started in one of the shops before spreading to nearby stalls. He added that the likely cause was an electrical surge while public power supply was on.
Inside Lagos State:
NSCDC Nabs Seven Suspects Over Infrastructure Vandalism, Theft in Lagos
NRC Suspends Lagos–Apapa Passenger Train Service for Three Weeks
Police Arrest Five Suspected Cultists, Recover 500 SIM Cards, Weapons in Lagos
According to the agency, 17 of the 32 shops in the affected section were destroyed, with goods including foodstuffs, groceries and other merchandise lost in the fire.
Despite the damage, no deaths or injuries were recorded, while several adjoining shops were saved due to the prompt intervention of emergency responders.
Afolabi said recovery operations had been completed and the response team had returned to base.
Following the incident, LASEMA Permanent Secretary, Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, urged traders and market leaders to observe electrical safety measures by ensuring proper wiring, avoiding overloading electrical appliances and carrying out regular inspections of electrical installations.
He also advised residents to report emergencies through the state’s toll-free emergency numbers, 112 and 767.
The market fire comes just days after another fire gutted a three-storey residential building in the Ikosi area of Lagos, although no casualties were recorded in that incident.
About The Author
