Developer’s whereabouts uncertain as three die, three rescued in Ikoyi building collapse
Before and after the collapse
Following the collapse of a 21-floor building under construction at 44B C & D Gerald Road, Ikoyi on Monday afternoon, the Lagos State Emergency Agency (LASEMA) is leading the search and rescue operation, even as three are confirmed dead.
The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Hakeem Odumosu, who confirmed the deaths, noted that three survivors had been rescued. Several others, mostly construction workers, are presumably still trapped under the debris.
While the cause of the collapse is still unknown, workers at the scene said the building had been under construction for two years.
A statement by LASEMA posted on Facebook said the agency’s Director General/Chief Executive Officer, Dr Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, visited the scene of the collapse in company with the Lagos State Commissioner for Special Duties and Intergovernmental Relations, Engr. Tayo Bamgbose-Martins, and the Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development, Dr Idris Salako.
LASEMA noted that it had activated its emergency response plan, adding that while all first responders were at the scene, its life detection equipment had been deployed. Photos circulated on social media show one survivor being led into a bus.
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The development has been identified as 360 Degrees Towers, a residential building with 4-bedroom flats, duplexes and penthouses. As advertised in a September edition of our sister publication, Highbrow Living, the high-rise was to have serviced flats in the three towers “for residents to experience a stress-free lifestyle, complete with a hotel flair with a 360 degree view of Lagos State.”
Advert in Highbrow Living Magazine
The building, which was slated for delivery in 2022, was said to have been 65% sold and comprised features such as outdoor recreation with outdoor television, as well as a gym and swimming pool.
Eyewitness accounts place the developer, Mr Olufemi Osibona, in the building during the dreaded collapse. However, efforts to reach the LASEMA DG for confirmation proved abortive as calls to his phone went unanswered on Monday evening.
In a now viral video, an elated Osibona can be seen at the top of 360 Degrees introducing a Nigerian lady and three men from Italy, one of whom is described as the architect. It is however unclear how recently the video was recorded.
Osibona, who is the Managing Director of Fourscore Homes, attended the prestigious Mayflower Secondary School, Ikene, Ogun State before proceeding to Croydon University in the UK, where he studied Business and Finance. As a celebrated philanthropist, he reportedly built and donated three buildings for Little Saints Orphanage at No. 15 Joe Ona Agbato Close, Ogudu Garden Valley G.R.A. He is known to visit and feed orphans monthly and has an annual feeding programme in Ikenne Ijebu, his hometown.