A Christmas eve blaze leaves death, debt and devastation

A fire outbreak at the Great Nigeria Insurance building on Lagos Island left at least eight people dead and destroyed goods worth billions of naira. It wiped out the livelihoods of traders who had stocked up for the yuletide with loans. As rescue efforts continue and families search for missing loved ones, the tragedy exposed deep failures in emergency response, market safety and financial protection for Nigeria’s informal economy. YOUSUPH ADEBAYO writes

For Aina Babatunde, a trader who has worked at Balogun Market for more than a decade, the fire wiped out the biggest investment she had ever made. Only days earlier, she had returned from China, where she purchased large volumes of bags, shoes and clothing to meet festive demand. The goods, worth nearly N25 million, arrived shortly after and were stored in her rented warehouse spaces inside the GNI building, where she had kept her stock for the past six years.

Aina Babatunde’s goods, purchased on credit, went up in  flames

“I was planning to expand. This was the largest batch of goods I had ever bought. I took a loan from my cooperative to do it, believing Christmas sales would help me grow the business,” Babatunde, a widow with three children, recounted bitterly to BusinessDay Investigations on Saturday.

That afternoon, she had visited the warehouse to inspect the new stock and distribute some items to her four stalls within Balogun Market.

By the time smoke became visible from nearby Breadfruit Street, she had no idea the fire was already ripping through the very building that housed her future.

Moments later, the scale of the loss became clear. Goods purchased on credit, years of reinvested profit, and carefully laid expansion plans had all gone up in flames.

“Millions were on fire, and I couldn’t do anything about it. I have goods worth almost N25 million in that store, Babatunde, who was visibly shaken from the event, said with misty eyes.

“How do I repay the loan from the cooperative? How do I restart this business?”

Read also: Sanwo-Olu confirms 8 fatalities, 13 survivors at GNI Building fire

Burnt to death while saving goods

Inside the GNI building warehouse, three friends, Mrs Dorcas Adejobi, Mrs Olaide Afolabi and Mrs Temitope Ezekiel, had spent years building a joint trading enterprise.

Since 2018, they pooled capital, shared profits and carved out distinct roles with Adejobi handling shoes and bags, Afolabi taking charge of household fabrics, while Ezekiel specialised in men’s suits.

On that fateful Christmas Eve, the trio were inspecting newly arrived stock, laughing and planning the wedding of Ezekiel’s daughter, scheduled for early February 2026.

But at about 4:15 pm, smoke began to appear from the upper floors, and friends rushed to salvage what they could.

They hauled boxes of merchandise toward the stairwell, tossing bundles down to the ground floor as flames crept closer. They managed to clear two of their three stores. But as the fire tightened its grip, Ezekiel made a risky decision to go back into the inferno one last time to save goods from the last store.

Adejobi and Afolabi look over the wreckage of their warehouses while mourning the loss of a friend and business partner

She disappeared into the flames and never emerged. It was only days later, on the Saturday after the fire, that rescuers found her body, charred beyond recognition and identified by a silk scarf her friends once bought for her.

The piles of burnt stock around her were testimony to a desperate bid to save what mattered most to her, not just merchandise, but the hope of a future built with borrowed money.

Delayed emergency response

These individual stories of lost goods, shattered dreams and human life, now define the aftermath of the Christmas Eve inferno at the GNI building, turning one of Lagos Island’s busiest commercial hubs into a landscape of ruins and heartbroken traders.

Eyewitnesses who spoke with our correspondent describe scenes of chaos as traders and onlookers scrambled to evacuate both people and merchandise.

Many reportedly attempted to pour water from buckets on the fire before official responders arrived, but the intensity of the fire quickly overwhelmed these efforts.

One of the victims, Adejobi walks past a fire truck stationed at the site of the fire outbreak

A storekeeper at a building adjacent to the GNI site, identified as Adenike Ademola, narrates, “Within five minutes, we heard loud explosions, and the fire was everywhere.”

BusinessDay Investigations gathered that local “area boys”, young men often serving informal security or labour roles, were among the first responders to haul buckets of water toward the blaze, but their efforts were barely a drop against the inferno.

Several traders and residents said they began calling the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service shortly after smoke became visible, but official emergency responders did not arrive until after 6 pm, nearly two hours later.

It was also gathered that even when fire engines reached the scene, responders struggled.

Multiple witnesses reported that the initial firehoses were not long enough to reach the upper floors where the blaze had already climbed, forcing crews to wait for additional equipment while neighbouring buildings, including a mosque, a seven-storey commercial complex, and several smaller structures, were engulfed in the fire.

Findings by BusinessDay Investigations show that these factors turned what might have been a contained incident into one of the largest market disasters in Lagos’ memory.

By the time emergency responders, including the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, and other security agencies, gained partial control, at least eight people were confirmed dead, and thirteen more were pulled alive from the rubble.

The Lagos State Government said some bodies were so badly charred that DNA tests would be required for identification.

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who visited the site several days after the blaze, described the scene as a reminder of long-standing structural and safety issues within the market.

Smoke and dust still cover the air days after the fire outbreak

After inspecting nearby buildings, he ordered a safety and building code evaluation throughout the Balogun Market area, noting widespread contraventions including unapproved construction, generators placed dangerously on upper floors, and shops held too close to electrical transformers. All these are conditions that can accelerate a fire’s spread and inhibit emergency access.

The tragedy has had a lasting impact that extends beyond this single incident. Balogun Market has a long history of fire outbreaks, with major infernos recorded in 2019, 2020 and 2022, often destroying goods worth millions of naira and occasionally endangering lives.

Beyond the physical destruction, the fire exposed a deeper vulnerability. Findings by BusinessDay Investigations show that most traders affected by the inferno had no insurance coverage for their goods, leaving them fully exposed to catastrophic losses.

According to a BusinessDay analysis published last year, Nigeria’s informal traders rarely insure their stock, leaving them fully exposed when fire outbreaks occur.

Official rescue efforts have continued long after the flames dimmed. With portions of the GNI building structurally compromised, a controlled demolition and recovery strategy is underway to protect responders and make the site safe for excavation and search operations.

Yet for many affected families and traders, the greatest challenge remains identifying missing loved ones, recovering part of their capital, or simply finding a path forward from the ashes of one of the deadliest market fires in recent Lagos history.

Over N5 billion goods lost – Market leader

Market leaders estimate that traders have lost over N5 billion worth of goods in the fire, a figure that continues to climb as more inventories are accounted for.

BusinessDay Investigations gathered that the GNI building housed more than a hundred warehouse units used by Balogun traders to store imported goods, many of which had arrived only days earlier for the festive season.

According to Alhaja Mistura Bamidele, the Balogun Market leader, most of the affected traders are bulk importers who source goods from China, Turkey and other international markets, often investing tens of millions of naira per shipment.

Bamidele notes that many traders recently got their goods delivered to them in containers because of the sales prospects of the yuletide period.

“Almost all the warehouses are fully packed with containers of goods. One of the cargo services we use is Wait and Carry. They just recently offloaded many containers for the traders and put them in the warehouse. Most of the containers are gone,” she explained.

The destruction was compounded by revelations from logistics firms that had recently offloaded cargo at the GNI warehouse.

One cargo company, Wait and Carry, confirmed in a notice obtained by BusinessDay Investigations that over 30 shipping containers delivered to the building were destroyed in the fire.

Bamidele said that given the number of containers affected as listed by the cargo company, the loss indeed runs into billions.

“Many of these containers have goods worth hundreds of millions of naira. And this is just one cargo company. There is still another one, Express Cargo, that hasn’t given us a list. When they do, we will calculate them, and that will bring the loss to more than the five billion naira I just mentioned,” she notes.

In the notice from Wait and Carry, the company says it would not issue a refund to its customers, even for the goods in their warehouse also located in the GNI building.

The statement read, “Kindly note that this incident falls under Force Majeure/Act of God, being an unforeseen and unavoidable event beyond the control of the company. As a result, no payments or refunds can be made to affected customers, as the company has also suffered a total and severe loss”.

When our correspondent asked Alhaja Bamidele, the Market Leader, if the traders have their goods insured to cover the loss incurred by the outbreak of the fire, she said, “We are local women. We don’t know any insurance. We just do our business and pray that this kind of calamity does not befall us.”

Read also: GNI fire: Sanwo-Olu orders residents, businesses to vacate danger zone

Ongoing Rescue Efforts

When our correspondent visited the scene of the tragic fire outbreak, more than 10 days after it started, the fog of smoke was still thick in the air. Rescue efforts were ongoing.

Emergency management officials retrieve a dead body trapped beneath the debris

It was observed that the rescue mission was led by officials of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency in coordination with the National Emergency Management Agency, the Lagos Neighbourhood Safety Agency, the Lagos State Environmental Health Monitoring Agency and the Nigerian Police.

BusinessDay Investigations also learnt that officials of the Red Cross Society were on the ground to support evacuation efforts.

Officials of the Red Cross Society joins other agency for rescue operations

Our correspondent observed that the site of the fire outbreak was barricaded. Excavators are tearing down the building, one floor after the other.

It was also discovered that the fire had affected several neighbouring structures around the GNI building, including a seven-storey building to the right, a three-storey building behind it, a two-storey building to the left, another three-storey building opposite the site, a mosque, two additional three-storey buildings behind the complex and other properties.

When closure matters more than survival

Kemi Lawal is among the traders still grappling with the human toll of the fire. Although she lost goods worth millions of naira, rebuilding her wholesale lingerie business is no longer her priority.

Lawal ran the business with her younger brother, Michael, 38, who was at their stall in the GNI building on the day of the fire. She had left the market an hour before the fire broke out. The siblings had argued over a family dispute, and she left the stall upset. That was the last time she saw him.

More than 10 days after the incident, Michael remains missing.

“I wish I had not left him in anger. I just want to see him again. They have not been able to retrieve his body. I have been to the morgue, but there is no record of him. I believe he is still inside the building. I just want to see him, even if it is his dead body,” Lawal told BusinessDay Investigations.

Rescue officials confirmed to BusinessDay that several bodies have been recovered from the rubble, many of them badly burnt or mutilated, complicating identification efforts.

Lawal said she is prepared for any outcome, as long as she can confirm her brother’s fate.

“I saw a man whose wife’s body was recovered, with her head separated. The family collected the remains and buried her properly. Even if my brother is dead, I just want to see his body and give him a proper burial. That is the only way I can find closure after this tragedy,” she said.

Rescuers attempt to retrieve the mangled corpse of a victim

More people still trapped- LNSA

Rescue teams who spoke to BusinessDay Investigations said there is every possibility that there are still more people trapped under piles of debris.

Our correspondent observed that despite the incident being more than a week ago, rescue efforts have been hampered by limited access to the site of the incident.

Gbolahan Ige, head of rescue operations at the Lagos Neighbourhood Safety Agency (LNSA), said the conjoined nature of buildings in the market significantly worsened both the spread of the fire and rescue efforts.

“We strongly believe more people are still trapped inside. Just yesterday, we recovered another body. That was only possible after the government approved the demolition of surrounding structures to allow proper access. About 75 percent of the GNI building has not been accessible,” he said.

Ige noted that more structures around the GNI building will be demolished, and a procedural plan for thorough search and rescue efforts is underway.

“Most of the buildings have been affected by the fire in any case. The governor has given orders for us to proceed with demolishing them. Our biggest fear is that we might have been able to save more lives if the entire surrounding area had been easily accessible. Now, the people trapped in there have either been burnt by the fire, dead due to the impact of the falling debris or inhaled too much smoke for them to even survive. It is a race against time,” he added.

Ige further said the agency has documented at least 13 missing persons so far, a figure he believes could rise as more families continue to report relatives unaccounted for days after the incident.

“Families have been coming around to report that their relatives are missing. This is why we believe that there are still more people there. It’s been more than a week since this incident happened. If anybody got lost somehow in the chaos that ensued afterwards, they would have at least gone back home since then. But the list of missing persons keeps growing,” he said.

Experts fault the government’s reactive approach

Experts have warned that similar disasters will continue to occur if the Lagos State Government maintains a reactive approach to fire safety instead of prioritising prevention.

Speaking with BusinessDay Investigations, Babatunji Adegoke, a civil engineer, said repeated fire outbreaks across Lagos markets suggest that authorities have failed to learn from previous incidents.

“In almost all recent cases of fire outbreaks in Lagos, the government’s response has been reactive. We have witnessed several fires, particularly on Lagos Island. A few months ago, Afriland Towers caught fire. With incidents like that, one would expect a thorough review of what went wrong and what must be done to prevent a recurrence,” Adegoke said.

He added that there is an urgent need for a comprehensive review of what is causing fire outbreaks and the implementation of practical solutions.

Engineering professionals also attribute the recurring outbreaks to weak enforcement of existing building regulations.

Lagos State has building control guidelines under the Urban and Regional Planning and Development Law of 2019, which incorporates provisions of the National Building Code and is enforced by the Lagos State Building Control Agency. Experts, however, say enforcement remains inconsistent.

Kunle Awobodu, a former president of the Nigerian Institute of Building and pioneer president of the Building Collapse Prevention Guild, said the problem is not the absence of regulations but the failure to enforce them.

“We already have policies that guide the construction of buildings in Lagos, what is needed is stricter enforcement of these laws. Over the years, the state government has set up several committees that produced reports intended to improve urban planning while prioritising safety, sustainability and standards, but implementation has been weak, he added.

Awobodu said stronger enforcement would help reduce fire risks in both residential and commercial buildings.

He noted that the GNI building itself was structurally sound, which partly explains why it did not immediately collapse despite the intensity of the fire.

“The GNI building is well constructed, which is why it was able to withstand such a severe fire without collapsing instantly. However, it is surrounded by buildings with weak structural integrity, many of them residential and built with substandard materials. If those buildings had been properly constructed, the scale of damage from the fire would have been much smaller,” he said.

Awobodu also said the use of large advertisement materials on high-rise buildings contributed to the spread of the fire.

“One of the factors that worsened the fire was the advertisement material mounted on the building,” he said. “When it caught fire, it fell onto the roof of the plaza beside it, increasing the damage and the number of casualties. It is time to insist that advertisement materials on high-rise buildings are made from non-flammable materials, safety should not be compromised in the name of business,” Awobodu said.

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