A Race to Save Children in Nigeria Collapse, but 8 People Are Dead

LAGOS, Nigeria — Sunday Adeyemo left his home on crowded Lagos Island early Wednesday as he always does, only to receive devastating news just hours later: The three-story building that housed not just his family’s apartment, but a primary and nursery school, had collapsed.

His 7-year-old daughter was inside. She did not survive. At least eight people have died, Nigerian officials said by late Wednesday evening.

I’m totally devastated,” said a badly shaken Mr. Adeyemo, who was on the way to the hospital to collect the body of his daughter, Taiwo, a second-grader.

Scenes of horror and grief surrounded the building that had housed the Ohel Nursery and Primary School on Wednesday, as terrified parents and hundreds of onlookers hoped for the best. At least 70 people were inside the building at 10 a.m. when it fell, and possibly many more, neighbors said.

Rescue efforts continued into the night. Workers had pulled at least 37 people alive from the site, government officials said, tossing aside backpacks and classroom equipment to dig through the rubble. Many were dusty and dazed toddlers who were slung over the shoulders of workers and carried to waiting ambulances. Some were limp.

Fashanu Kudus, who lives in a house overlooking the rescue site, said he had watched the building collapse.

We just heard ‘wham’ and the three-story building was reduced to rubble,” he said.

It’s a scene that has been repeated through the years in Lagos, Africa’s most populous city and one of the largest in the world, with an estimated 23.4 million people.

Construction here is regulated poorly, if at all, residents have long complained. Some occupied buildings have cracked foundations and tilted floors, creating a sensation of walking on a listing ship. Lagos Island in particular is known for its poor urban planning, narrow access roads and lack of public water supply.

The developers just do whatever they like,” said Ruka Salami, who lives near the collapsed

building.

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People watch rescue workers at the site of a collapsed building containing a school in Nigeria's commercial capital of Lagos, Nigeria March 13, 2019. REUTERS/Afolabi Sotunde)