The
rescue operation at the site of the collapsed six-storey building owned
by the Synagogue Church of all Nations has been concluded.
The National Emergency Management Agency
and the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency which announced that
they had reached “ground zero” on Thursday, said a total of 131 people
were rescued while 80 corpses were recovered.
Some of those rescued alive, according to
them, have been discharged, while others are still receiving treatments
for various degrees of injuries at some hospitals in Lagos.
However, as emergency operations came to
an end, the church on Thursday released an official statement for the
first time since the incident occurred.
Incidentally, the statement is not any different from what has been in the public domain.
In the statement released on Thursday,
September 18, 2014, but dated Friday, September 12, 2014, the church
insisted that the incident was an attack on the church and its leader,
T.B. Joshua.
The statement read in part, “The church
views this tragedy as part of an attack on the Synagogue Church of all
Nations and in particular, Prophet T.B. Joshua. In due course, God will
reveal the perpetrators of this unfortunate tragedy.”
On the reports that members of the church
had initially not cooperated with rescue teams, the church said, “It is
very sad that inaccurate reports are coming from some quarters that we
are not cooperating with the rescue teams and other agencies in
collating information and providing assistance on the incident. Contrary
to this, we want to categorically state that the church has provided
assistance when and where required and continues to do so – good
Christians are good citizens.”
NEMA to train large organizations
The Spokesperson for NEMA, Ibrahim
Farinloye, said on Thursday that the incident at SCOAN had opened the
eyes of the agency to the need to train large organizations on the
management of emergency situations.
Farinloye said the agency would train emergency marshals to help in situations such as building collapse.
He said, “We intend to start training
churches and other large organizations to have emergency marshals to
handle situations like this. This incident has opened our eyes to focus
on that aspect.”
LASEMA fumigates affected area
The Lagos State Emergency Management
Agency said the next phase after the rescue of victims and the clearing
of rubble was to fumigate the affected areas.
In a text message sent to our correspondent, the agency said, “We have concluded emergency operations.
“A total of 80 bodies and 131 casualties
were recovered and they are receiving medical attention in various Lagos
State hospitals. Fumigation of the area will commence immediately.”
PUNCH
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