A woman has died after falling into a deep well at a Lagos construction site in Ijegun.
Her body was recovered days later through a joint rescue by multiple emergency agencies.
A tragic incident occurred in the Ijegun area of Lagos where a woman lost her life after falling into a 170-foot-deep well at a construction site.
The Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service confirmed the incident in a statement released on Friday. According to the agency, they received an emergency call at about 7:34 p.m. on Monday, June 30. The call reported that a woman had fallen into a well located in front of a one-storey building still under construction along Abuba Anthony Street, near Obalagbe Bus Stop and close to Fadeko International Hotel.
Maria Fadairo, the Senior Public Affairs Officer of the Fire Service, said responders from the Ejigbo Fire Station were the first to arrive at the scene. They found that the well, situated on a 648-square-metre fenced plot containing six two-bedroom flats, had not been covered properly, posing a serious risk to anyone nearby.
Because of the depth of the well and the difficulty of the situation, a multi-agency effort was launched to recover the victim. For several days, rescue officials worked together to manage the operation. The woman’s body was finally recovered on Thursday, July 10.
The recovery was carried out by the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service in collaboration with several agencies, including the Nigerian Police Force, the Lagos State Ambulance Service (LASAMBUS), and the State Environmental Health Monitoring Unit (SEHMU).
“The victim was recovered dead and handed over to SEHMU officials, while LASAMBUS stood by and the Nigeria Police monitored the process,” the agency noted in the statement.
Director of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, Mrs. Margaret Adeseye, offered her sympathy to the victim’s family.
“We extend our deepest condolences to the family of the deceased and appreciate the joint efforts of all response teams involved in the operation,” she said.
Adeseye also issued a strong reminder about the need for proper safety measures at building sites. She described the presence of a 170-foot uncovered well as a “serious danger” and stressed that such risks must be eliminated to prevent similar tragedies.
The Lagos State Criminal Investigation Department in Panti has taken over the case to determine the exact circumstances surrounding the incident and whether negligence played a role.
