Three die as two-storey shopping complex collapses in Owode-Ede
- A two-storey shopping complex collapsed late Friday night in Owode-Ede, Osun State, killing three people.
- Five people were rescued alive and taken to a private hospital in Ede, with four said to have serious injuries.
- The Fire Service suspects structural defects and substandard materials, and rescue work ended Saturday morning.
Three people have died after a two-storey shopping complex collapsed late on Friday night in the Owode-Ede area of Ede, Osun State. Five others were pulled from the rubble alive and rushed to a private hospital in Ede for treatment.
The Federal Fire Service, Osun State Command, said it received a distress call at about 11:30 p.m. and sent its personnel to the scene. The rescue operation, carried out with the police and the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), ended at about 9:26 a.m. on Saturday.
The command's spokesperson, DSF Ojo Omoyemi Olamide, said the bodies of the three dead were recovered and handed over to the police at the A Division, Ede. The building, according to the Fire Service, had six shops on the upper floor, six on the middle floor and two stores on the ground floor.
What we know about the victims
The Sun reported that those inside were tiling apprentices sleeping in the building so they could start work early the next morning. Their supervisor was said to be absent.
The Osun State Commandant of the Federal Fire Service, Femi Isaac, said five people were rescued alive, four of them with serious injuries including fractures to their legs and hands. One person who stayed up late escaped unhurt, he said.
Isaac also said the most senior apprentice told rescuers he had warned his colleagues against sleeping on the upper floor shortly before the building came down. Residents reported hearing a loud sound before 11 p.m.
The two reports differ slightly on the injured. The Fire Service statement spoke of five people taken to hospital, while The Sun quoted its commandant as saying four were seriously injured and five were rescued alive.
Cause and next steps
The Fire Service said preliminary findings pointed to structural defects and the use of substandard building materials. It put the value of property lost at about ₦100 million, with property worth about ₦150 million saved.
The Sun reported that the building's owner, who lives near the site, was present during the rescue. The reports did not say whether anyone has been arrested or whether the state government has ordered an investigation.
For residents of fast-growing towns like Ede, the collapse is a reminder of the risks of unapproved or poorly built structures. Building collapses have killed and injured people across Nigeria in recent years, often in buildings put up without proper supervision.
