A China-based cloth merchant, identified as Nze Obum has been confirmed dead after being trapped in the debris of the Great Nigerian Insurance house plaza which was destroyed by fire at Balogun market, Lagos Island.
Reports had it that the fire started from the fourth floor of the 25 storey building on Wednesday 24th December, and spread rapidly to the sixth floor before taking over the entire building and the ones nearby.
During this appalling incident, a detached section of the building collapsed, trapping traders and market assistants beneath the building.
Still on the report, Zacchaeus Afolayan, a trader at the same market revealed that Obum managed to make a phonecall from where he was trapped in the early hours of Thursday confirming that he was still alive.
He said:
“He called me around 2am, telling me that he was trapped and that others were also under the rubbles. He pleaded with me not to let him die, saying his children had no one else to care for them. He lives and works in China and only returns to Nigeria during festive periods to trade.”
The phone conversation was subsequently released online, sparking a loss of emotional comments.
Listen below:
