Abule Ado explosion: Catholic priest reportedly dies while trying to save trapped students
- A witness has disclosed how a Catholic priest died while attempting to get students out of their dormitory at Bethlehem Girls High School, in Abule Ado
- The witness said the priest involved in the rescue operation was killed by a pillar which fell when part of the building caved in
- The identity of the priest has not been made known, but residents said he worshipped at a nearby Catholic church
A witness has disclosed how a Catholic priest died while attempting to get students out of their dormitory at Bethlehem Girls High School, Abule Ado, Lagos, on Sunday, March 15.
Over 20 students were said to have been trapped in the dormitory as a result of the explosion that occurred in the areas, The Cable reports.
Source: UGC
A resident said the priest involved in the rescue operation was killed by a pillar which fell when part of the building caved in.
“He died trying to save the lives of those students,” one of the residents who gave his name simply as Delight said.
The identity of the priest has not been made known, but residents said he worshipped at a nearby Catholic church.
Delight disclosed that the explosion which occurred around 8am shook buildings and structures.
“The next thing we saw was that some parts of Bethlehem school had collapsed, and people started running,” he said.
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The residents said about 15 bodies were evacuated, and some volunteers who incurred several injuries have been taken to the hospital.
In a related report, fresh details available to Legit.ng show that a man, who is described as his parents' only son, and his wife, said to be an only daughter, were killed in the explosion that rocked a part of Lagos on Sunday, March 15.
The couple, according to their neighbours, got married two years ago. Ganiyu Olayiwola, who is the head of the federal fire service in Lagos state, confirmed that four people died in the incident that shook some parts of the state.
He also said the incident affected many houses.
Photographs available to Legit.ng showed rescuers and government officials at the scene evacuating the remains of the couple amid tears and wailing by neighbours.
This medium also obtained photographs of the wreckage of houses and vehicles affected by the explosion, whose cause is yet to be revealed by the authorities.
For those who escaped unhurt, many lost their belongings with some said to be left with nothing other than the clothes they wore at the time of the incident.
Also, Lagosians on social media were on edge following the pipeline explosion that happened around the Abule Ado in Amuwo Odofin local government area.
Many were seen on popular micro blogging platform, Twitter, giving brief recounts of their experiences when the explosion took place.
Some Lagos residents claimed that they heard the loud bang which left an impact on their windows, doors and other items in their houses.
"I just witnessed an explosion this morning. I was at 23 road, Festac Town at that time. Everywhere around me shook so hard and my ears went numb in an instant. Pls anyone living around 7th Avenue and Alakija area should be careful. I pray there are no casualties," a lady tweeted.
Another Twitter user that claimed he heard the explosion said: "I heard it from my house here at egbeda, I also heard that people from ikeja heard it too but that’s not the problem for now. It’s a pipeline explosion at festac, so if you have anybody around there, call them and ask if they are fine please."
However, it has been reported that pipeline vandals were not responsible for the explosions which occurred in Lagos on Sunday, March 15.
NEMA clarified that the explosion which occurred at Abule Ado, Trade Fair axis of Lagos state was not caused by a disruption of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) oil pipeline.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the explosion was caused instead by activities at a factory in the area.
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Lives lost, houses destroyed in Lagos explosion | Legit TV
Source: Legit.ng
