However, it was discovered around press time yesterday that the building project’s developers had disregarded specialists’ advice. The initial design called for 15 stories.

As of 5 p.m., four males had been carried out dead, while six others had been rescued alive. Both those who died and those who were rescued were workers at the construction site.

At around 2 p.m., tragedy struck as construction on the building continued. When the building collapsed, some of the workers were claimed to be napping.

A food vendor and her nine-year-old daughter were among those trapped, having arrived at the scene less than five minutes before the structure collapsed in.

Mr. Femi Osibona, one of Nigeria’s most prominent real estate developers, was in the building at the time of the collapse, although it was unclear whether he was killed in the wreckage. He had not yet been rescued.

The developer was reportedly on his way to the construction site when it collapsed. 360 Degrees Towers in Ikoyi was built by Osibona, the Managing Director of Four Score Properties.

Residents in the area commenced rescue operations before the arrival of government agencies,  comprising Police, officials of the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA; Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, LASEMA; Lagos State Fire Service,  the  Red Cross Society, and construction giant, Julius Berger Plc.

The Lagos State Commissioner of Police, CP Hakeem Odumosu, was also on the ground, coordinating security for rescued workers.

The entire area was cordoned off to allow for seamless rescue operation and prevent possible damages.

 Eyewitness account

Mr. Junaid Musiliu, an eyewitness, said, “I was walking around the neighborhood when I heard a deafening sound.” We assumed it was an explosion and bolted for cover, not knowing where the noise came from.

“We realized it was a structure that had collapsed after seven minutes.” Two males bolted from the building and began yelling for assistance. They claimed that people were trapped beneath the structure.”

“They were heading to get food from a food vendor at the impacted building when the unexpected happened,” the witness claimed.

According to the witness,  the food vendor identified simply as  Iya Modinat, and her daughter was under the rubble.

Although the cause of the collapse is not known, unconfirmed reports indicated how Prowess Engineering Limited withdrew its services from the building over poor execution of the project.

In a letter dated February 20, 2020, Muritala Olawale, Managing Director of Prowess Engineering Limited, said the firm could no longer vouch for the integrity of the building.

The letter addressed to Femi Osibona of Fourscore Heights Limited, the main contractor, stated that the execution of the project didn’t meet the required criteria.

It read:  “This letter is to formally inform you of the withdrawal of our structural consultancy service from the above-named project.

“We arrived at this decision because we no longer share the same vision with you as our client in terms of how the project is being executed,” the letter stated.

“We can guarantee the integrity of the first two buildings and also works done up to the fourth floor of the third building supervised by us provided specifications have been met in terms of the required concrete strength.

“This we do not have control over as we do not have the concrete cube test results for each stage of the building to date,

“Also, kindly note that we are not taking responsibility for any other construction errors that may have occurred overtime on the project.

“Furthermore, we request that our company’s name and logo be removed from the project board and also kindly notify all necessary approving authorities of our withdrawal from the project.

“We regret this decision and the lost opportunity to do business together. We look forward to future cooperation in other projects.”

It was learned that the developer got approval for 15-floors, the building was raised to 21, prompting the state government to mark it for violation of state building regulations.

The Federal Government through the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Umar Farouq, expressed shock at the incident just as she sympathized with the people and government of Lagos State.

She directed the National Emergency Management Agency, NEMA team from the Lagos Territorial Office to assist with the rescue operations at the site.

Special Adviser to the Minister on Media, Nneka Ikem Anibeze disclosed this in a statement on Monday.

The Minister was quoted as saying, “This is tragic. I sympathize with the Lagos state government and families of people still trapped inside the rubble.

“We have mobilized immediate rescue operations through the NEMA Team from the Lagos Territorial Office to team up with the state SEMA.

“NEMA has also facilitated the mobilization of response involving heavy-duty equipment for rescue operations and security for crowd control.

“We pray that through the rescue operatives still on ground at the site, many of those trapped will be rescued.”

In response, Lagos State Governor Bababjide Sanwo-Olu ordered a quick investigation into the terrible building collapse yesterday.

“Governor Sanwo-Olu has ordered an investigation into the incident,” his Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr. Gbenga Omotoso, stated in a statement.

“The General Manager of the Lagos State Building Control Agency, Arch. Gbolahan Oki, was also at the scene assessing the site for any likely damage to the surrounding structures.

“A report of the investigations will be made public in due course,” Omotoso assured citizens.”

On the wide circulated death of the developer, Farinloye said, the circumstances at the scene of the building collapse made it difficult for emergency officials to ascertain if the developer was trapped or not.

Farinloye said: “Members of the public should be patient and allow us to continue our findings. The true state of the developer will be made public at the appropriate time.”