‘How pregnant woman was rescued’ — eyewitnesses speak on Afriland Towers fire

Beneath the looming silhouette of Afriland Towers in Lagos, a grim scene unfolded on September 16, as street urchins and local shop owners gathered in desperate solidarity to rescue distressed workers. The six-storey building, engulfed in thick smoke from a fire that started in the inverter room located in the basement, became a battleground where ordinary citizens transformed into heroes. 

Workers trapped inside clung to windowsills, their faces etched with panic and desperation, seeking any means of escape as the smoke spread to upper floors.

Amid the chaos, rescuers erected ladders against the building’s exterior, while others braved the smoke-filled stairwells without any sophisticated equipment but armed only with empathy and sheer determination.

In groups, these rescuers carried unconscious victims down the perilous stairs, their bodies limp from smoke inhalation.

Aderinola Ojo, one of the rescuers, who joined about fifteen others in the rescue effort, recounted to TheCable the harrowing experience.

“We found so many people lying unconscious on the stairs,” he said. “When I got in, I personally brought four people out. We also helped carry a pregnant woman who had become heavy and unconscious. Another man was laid on a window ledge and carefully lifted down to safety outside the building before the fire service arrived.”

Despite the danger and exhaustion, Ojo emphasised, “We weren’t compensated. We did it out of empathy, not to receive anything from anybody.”

Ganiyat Olatunbosun, a petty trader selling sachet alcohol directly opposite Afriland Towers, reflected on the unlikely alliance forged in the face of tragedy.

“The situation would have been far more grim if the agbero had not stepped in to help the workers trapped inside,” she said.

Though their worlds are often miles apart — the street urchins, known as agbero, mostly clad in tattered, dirty clothes, while the office workers don crisp white or blue shirts, neatly knotted ties, and polished shoes — the urgency of the moment erased all social divides.

Ganiyat described how the agberos quickly located a ladder and mounted it against a window, enabling trapped workers to climb down to safety. She said those who were already unconscious were carefully carried out by these selfless rescuers.

Unfortunately, despite the effort made to rescue people trapped in the building, many of them still died in the incident.

The fire claimed the lives of at least ten employees from major institutions housed in the building, including six from United Capital and four from the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).

A source claiming to be an acquaintance of Sunday Jatto David, an assistant director at FIRS, said the deceased, who worked with the agency for 15 years, had entered the building that day to hand over to his successor.

Another tragic loss was George Faith Ekelikhostse, also an assistant director at FIRS, who passed away just three days before her 58th birthday.

“She was a living saint,” a netizen who described herself as close to Ekelikhoste wrote on X.

Nurudeen, a young man whose mother sells children’s shoes just across the paved road from Afriland Towers, witnessed the tragedy unfold with painful clarity. He recalled a man, whom he described as fat and carrying a large backpack, who jumped to safety but lost his balance.

Corroborating the now viral video, he said the man’s head struck the concrete pavement below, causing him to faint instantly. Nurudeen added that though he was resuscitated on the scene, he later learned that the man succumbed to his injuries.

“There was a foam cushion for them to jump onto, but the man appeared to have lost his balance due to his weight. Instead of landing on the foam, he struck the pavement with his head and fainted immediately,” he told TheCable.

So today AFRILAND TOWERS building was on fire, the fire started from the basement where the elevator battery exploded from and smoke gradually filled the entire building from the stairs case. The whole electricity supply was shut down that the only available escape was from the pic.twitter.com/zS5n6Xql83

— NOVA♣️ (@I_am_Novva) September 16, 2025

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This tragedy revealed not only the fragility of life but also the profound humanity that emerges in moments of crisis. Strangers became saviours, social barriers dissolved, and empathy became the most powerful tool in the fight against unforeseen disaster that led to fatality.

Following the incident, Tony Elumelu, chairman of the United Bank for Africa (UBA), parent company of United Capital, cut short his US trip to mourn the victims.

The company also announced plans for a memorial service to honour the victims with dignity and solemnity.

“Our departed colleagues were an integral part of our company and family. Their painful loss leaves an immeasurable void,” the company said.

“We extend our deepest and heartfelt condolences to their families, friends, and loved ones, and we continue to hold them in our thoughts and prayers, as well as providing all the support we can to them during this most difficult time.”