Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, has said the fire incident that occurred at Terminal 1 of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, has hastened their move to totally rehabilitate the building.
Keyamo, who spoke on Tuesday, February 24, during an inspection of the MMIA Terminal 1 razed by fire, said the building was about to be pulled down for a new structure to be raised before the incident happened.
“Even before this fire, we had already made arrangements to move most of the airlines and other entities in that space to the temporary place provided by the CCECC,” Keyamo stated.
“What this has just done is to hasten our move away from the building. The building was about to be pulled down and totally rehabilitated,” he added.
Pinnacle Daily reports that the fire broke out at Terminal 1 of MMIA Lagos on Monday, February 23.
According to a statement by the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), preliminary findings by the Fire Service indicate that the fire originated from the server room on the first floor of Terminal 1.
While no life was lost, FAAN reported that six casualties — comprising three males and three females — were recorded, but they are in stable condition.
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FAAN said emergency response was swiftly activated as firefighting teams battled the raging fire, while the orderly evacuation of passengers and airport personnel took place simultaneously.
The minister, who arrived Lagos at about 11:50 pm on Monday, joined the managing director of FAAN, Olubunmi Kuku, and the management team of the agency on the ground coordinating response efforts to contain the fire.
On Tuesday morning, the minister, accompanied by the FAAN Managing Director, inspected the affected facilities at the MMIA. He commended FAAN personnel and all emergency responders for their prompt and coordinated actions that helped to contain the situation and save lives.
“I commended FAAN personnel and first responders for their swift activation of established emergency procedures, noting that their prompt and coordinated actions were instrumental in safeguarding lives and limiting the impact of the incident,” Keyamo stated via a post on his X handle.
The incident led to an initial glitch in flight operations, but normalcy was later restored as passengers moved to board flights to their various destinations.
The minister said there is no cause for alarm and assured passengers and all stakeholders that safety measures were in place. He said the fire did not affect the new terminal, adding that all airlines and entities using the affected old terminal would be relocated to the temporary site for seamless operations while the full reconstruction commences.
While revealing that a lot of equipment was damaged, the minister assured that the temporary terminal is fitted with modern facilities and can accommodate about four airlines.
Victor Ezeja is a passionate journalist, scholar and analyst of socioeconomic issues in Nigeria and Africa. He is skilled in energy reporting, business and economy, and holds a master's degree in mass communication.
