Woman, 80, dies in Kwara fire

An 80-year-old woman died in a fire disaster in Ilorin on Sunday, the Kwara Fires Service said on Monday.

Kwara State Fire Service spokesman, Mr Hassan Adekunle, who confirmed the incident, said smoke emitting from the fire suffocated the octogenarian who could not trace the staircase to escape.

He said fire-fighters doused the fire and prevented a major disaster in the area.

Hassan said though the cause of the fire was yet to be ascertained, it was confined to the first floor of the storey building from where it originated.

“Out of the four flats in the storey building, only one flat was affected,’’ he added.

He said the delay in making a distress call to the fire service enabled the fire to cause severe damage to the building.

“In a related development, another fire outbreak was recorded on Sunday at a residential building in Offa, Offa Local Government Area of Kwara.

“The fire which resulted from a power surge involved a storey building of about 16 rooms, but only eight rooms were affected.

“Total estimated property saved is N62.8 million, while total estimated property lost is put at N17.2 million.” Adekunle said.