Following a school-turned-residential building that partially collapsed on Sunday in the Ketu neighborhood of Lagos, at least two people are currently fighting for their lives at a private hospital.
The Agboye Estate building on Oduntan Street in Ketu, which contained over 800 rooms and hundreds of residents, first collapsed on Saturday afternoon after hours of rain that befell most of Lagos.
On Sunday afternoon, as people were still attempting to save their belongings, the building collapsed once more, completely destroying another building inside the compound.
Numerous families and individuals residing in the building were forced to leave the area after the development spread panic.
During a visit to the damaged building on Sunday evening, dozens of residents could be seen relocating their possessions in various directions as Lagos State Emergency Management Agency officials cordoned off the area.
Officials in Lagos have designated the affected compound, which contained several defective buildings, for demolition.
“500-room house in Lagos where tenants live as prisoners” was the title of a report on the collapsed building that Saturday PUNCH published in December 2014 after conducting weeks of research.
The report detailed the appalling living circumstances of Agboye Estate tenants, who had to contend with snakes, scorpions, and other venomous creatures because of standing sewage water at the back of the structure.
Most of the blocks, which were built inches from one another, had at least 12 rooms that shared a single bathroom and toilet.
Two people typically occupy each space, making a total of 24 people using one toilet.
In addition, the building’s landlord, Onamo Agboye, forbids tenants from using power generators, electric kettles, air conditioners, or even hosting significant social gatherings like naming ceremonies or birthday parties there.
Every day at 11:00 p.m., the only entrance into and out of the compound closes; after that time, neither people nor vehicles enter or exit.
The Lagos State Government at the time partially sealed the building but later lifted the ban.
Following the tragedy on Sunday, the landlord of Agboye Estate has since disappeared.
