Badagry fire claims 1 life, destroys 3 buildings

A 25-year-old man was electrocuted while three buildings, including a Church, were burnt down on Tuesday evening in a fire that occurred in a Badagry community.

The fire broke out when one of two Camry cars loaded with polythene bags containing petrol exploded in Gbaji community in Badagry.

A reliable source told our correspondent that the fire started at 5:30p.m after smugglers of petrol loaded the vehicles with the product, which they wanted to take across the border for sale..

“The community is near to the river, so they use boat to bring the petrol while it is loaded inside vehicles before being taken to Benin Republic through Gbaji-Owode road.

“The two vehicles had been loaded, it was when they were about to go that one of the cars caught fire and exploded.

“It also affected the second car while the drivers escaped before the angry mob in the village could catch them.

“The fire outbreak affected the 33kva pole and one of the high tension wires dropped and fell on one man who was at the site of the explosion.

“He was electrocuted immediately, and gave up the ghost on the way to General Hospital in Badagry.

“Two buildings and one Church were completely burnt down by the inferno,” the source who sought anonymity said.

Confirming the incident, Mr Abel Wusu, the Officer in Charge of Badagry Fire Service told our correspondent that the fire outbreak was reported at the station at 5:57p.m.

“Yesterday, we received a fire call at 5:57p.m on the fire outbreak at Gbaji community along Badagry-Seme expressway.

“Getting to the scene, we discovered it was a fire incident involving two Camry cars that were fully loaded with petrol in polythene bags.

“We did our best and the fire was extinguished at exactly 7:12p.m, however, the fire had affected two buildings and one Church.

“The two buildings contained four rooms apartments while the other is just two rooms.

”We heard that a man was electrocuted by the high tension wire that cut during the inferno.

“They said he gave up the ghost on the way to hospital,” he said.