A newborn baby and the child's parents were pulled from their burning apartment by neighbours in the early hours of Tuesday after fire spread through several buildings in Oloje Phase 2, Ilorin, according to Punch Newspapers. The Kwara State Fire Service said the blaze began on Lawyer Lambo Street in Ilorin West Local Government Area and was traced to the collapse of a concrete pole carrying a 33kV transmission line.
The family's room-and-parlour self-contained apartment was the worst hit structure, Punch Newspapers reports. Community members reached the occupants before firefighters arrived, and all three survived.
Why it matters
The fire service's preliminary account points to overhead power infrastructure as the trigger, not a fault inside any of the buildings. That places the incident within a category of risk the state's chief fire officer says residents can reduce by keeping clear of transmission lines and reporting damaged poles and exposed cables early.
The timing adds weight. The Oloje Phase 2 fire came less than a day after another blaze destroyed a building of three-bedroom flats in Kangile Village, Ilorin South Local Government Area, on Monday, Punch Newspapers reports.
What the fire service says was damaged
In a statement issued on Tuesday, fire service Public Relations Officer Hassan Adekunle said the agency took a distress call and reached the scene at 2:41 am.
According to the statement, the fire touched three buildings: two four-bedroom flats and the self-contained apartment. The apartment, home to the couple and their newborn, was severely affected.
Three vehicles were parked at one of the flats when the fire broke out. One was completely burnt; firefighters saved the other two. The second four-bedroom flat sustained damage in its kitchen, where appliances including a freezer were affected, and its solar power system was also damaged.
An adjoining travel and tours office lost its solar power setup, four tubular batteries and other electrical appliances, the agency said. A vulcanising workshop nearby was destroyed after the fallen high-tension line came down on the structure.
How the fire started
Punch Newspapers reports that the agency's initial findings attribute the outbreak to the collapse of the concrete pole supporting the 33kV line. The line fell onto the vehicle that burned, and a spark is said to have set its tyre alight before the fire spread quickly.
The downed line also complicated the response. The fire service said the live conductor made the scene unsafe for its crews, so it contacted the control room of the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company and asked for the feeder serving the area to be switched off. That step, the agency said, allowed firefighters to work in a safer environment and bring the emergency under control.
Safety warning to residents
Chief Fire Officer Alabi Muhammed expressed sympathy to the residents, property owners and business operators who lost property in the incident.
He urged people not to put up structures beneath high-tension transmission lines and asked developers and residents to respect the safety setbacks required around electricity infrastructure. Keeping a safe distance from such lines, he said, lowers the chance of electrical accidents, fires and damage to lives and property.
Muhammed also advised residents to report fallen poles, damaged electrical equipment and exposed lines to the relevant authorities without delay, and to stay away from downed wires or anything touching them. The agency thanked the community members who helped get the occupants of the apartment out and stressed the value of cooperation between residents and emergency responders.
Punch Newspapers reports that the statement was issued by Hassan Adekunle, the service's public relations officer, and carries the chief fire officer's remarks.
What to watch: whether the state fire service completes its investigation into the pole collapse and whether the electricity distribution company inspects similar poles along the 33kV network in Ilorin West.
