According to eyewitnesses, the fire started around 12.18am on Saturday following an electric spark, which set shops in front of the building ablaze and spread to other parts quickly.
An uncle to the victims, Danmola Ajani, who said the building was the familys’ property, noted that when the fire started, everybody was thrown into confusion.
He added that the victims’ father, Tunde, an automobile mechanic, escaped through the window to push the car he brought home away from the inferno.
Ajani explained that his brother took the action to save the house from further destruction as there was a gas cylinder in the car, adding that a generator was also working at the time.
He said the children’s mother, Adijat, who also escaped from the burning house, quickly picked up a baby boy, whom he said was not feeling fine.
According to him, before Tunde could return to rescue the two girls, they had already being burnt beyond recognition.
Ajani, who is a retired employee of the Lagos State Fire Service, said it was difficult to rescue the situation because there was no borehole around the area.
“Some youths went to the lagoon to fetch water, which we used to extinguish the inferno before firefighters arrived. I called them long before they came. It is difficult to locate this place. The poor state of the roads contributed to our travail that day. It took them almost four hours to get to this place because of the extremely bad roads from Odoguyan to this place.”
He toot The Punch that before he left the service, he made unsuccessful attempts in Lagos state government to secure a piece of land to build a fire service station in Ijede.
The Director of Fire Service, Lagos State, Mrs Margaret Onabajo, confirmed the incident.
An uncle to the victims, Danmola Ajani, who said the building was the familys’ property, noted that when the fire started, everybody was thrown into confusion.
He added that the victims’ father, Tunde, an automobile mechanic, escaped through the window to push the car he brought home away from the inferno.
Ajani explained that his brother took the action to save the house from further destruction as there was a gas cylinder in the car, adding that a generator was also working at the time.
He said the children’s mother, Adijat, who also escaped from the burning house, quickly picked up a baby boy, whom he said was not feeling fine.
According to him, before Tunde could return to rescue the two girls, they had already being burnt beyond recognition.
Ajani, who is a retired employee of the Lagos State Fire Service, said it was difficult to rescue the situation because there was no borehole around the area.
“Some youths went to the lagoon to fetch water, which we used to extinguish the inferno before firefighters arrived. I called them long before they came. It is difficult to locate this place. The poor state of the roads contributed to our travail that day. It took them almost four hours to get to this place because of the extremely bad roads from Odoguyan to this place.”
He toot The Punch that before he left the service, he made unsuccessful attempts in Lagos state government to secure a piece of land to build a fire service station in Ijede.
The Director of Fire Service, Lagos State, Mrs Margaret Onabajo, confirmed the incident.
