Nigeria: Blaze hits Lagos after fireworks blast
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An explosion in a warehouse has sparked a major fire in Lagos, Nigeria's largest city and commercial capital.
Officials said a building storing fireworks in the largest market area of Lagos Island exploded, and the ensuing blaze spread to up to nine buildings.
The blast reportedly shook windows of homes miles away and a thick cloud of smoke could be seen over the city.
Several people have been injured but it remains unclear if there were any fatalities.
Continue reading the main story At the scene A cloud of smoke billowed from the scene of the explosion, accompanied by the sparks of fireworks. The sound of popping and crackling carried on as the fire raged on in this densely populated part of Lagos full of closely packed buildings in narrow streets. Residents of the area told me they thought it was a bomb at first when blast shook buildings around Jankara Market, the largest in Lagos. A few people showed me shrapnel wounds they got even though they were a fair distance from the explosion. There was little the people could do but watch, with some trying to get photographs of the incident on their mobile phones. Emergency workers say they had problems getting past the huge crowds of onlookers, similar to a complaint they raised in June when a plane crashed into a residential area in another part of Lagos.
Thousands of people in the area gathered to watch, as the fire destroyed neighbouring buildings.
Some residents jumped out of windows in panic as fireworks exploded long after the initial blaze, AFP news agency reported.
The BBC's Tomi Oladipo, who is at the scene, says he saw people with shrapnel wounds some distance from the fire and that it is quite likely anyone closer would have been worse affected.
The Nigerian Red Cross said it had treated at least 30 people, AFP reported.
Firefighters took about an hour to reach the scene, according to our correspondent, because of the huge crowds.
Some residents grabbed hoses from fire engines and tried to fight the blaze themselves, but the Associated Press reports that the engines quickly ran out of water.
Police and security officials recovered mortar-like fireworks and many empty firework shells from the scene, the agency said.
Our correspondent says that for years there have been calls for the ban of fireworks – which are widely used during the end-of-year holidays in Nigeria – but they have never been enforced.
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At least one person has been killed and at least thirty were injured as the result of a fire in the city of  in Nigeria after an explosion in a building with fireworks stored in it. As many as nine other buildings in the  fire yesterday were also impacted by the flames, according to authorities. The fire was reportedly the cause of the explosion, although this is yet to be confirmed.

Some local residents reportedly jumped out of the windows of buildings in fright in the large commercial area of Jankara. One man, Wasiu Olaleye, required treatment for a cut to his leg because "I had to jump from the first floor to save my life", he said. Some local businesses were open when the incident occurred, but yesterday was a .

A school located in close proximity to the warehouse was significantly damaged in the incident. Numerous vehicles in the area were completely burnt out by the fire. The windows of several nearby buildings were also destroyed as the fire caused the windows of houses a few miles away to shake. Thick smoke was also sighted above Lagos.

Crowds of thousands of nearby people accumulated near the fire, with spectators and individuals intending to assist or gain information about relatives amongst them. Three fire service tanker vehicles attended the scene, but used up all their water supplies. Some people in the crowd attempted to assist fire crews with holding fire hoses and gathering water-filled containers. Some of these people were taken to hospital for treatment after experiencing injuries. One official reported military assistance was used. Additional water arrived later, as the severity of the fire slowly decreased.

The large crowds were part of the reason it took around an hour for fire service members to reach the scene of the fire. News agency '''' was told by a government official that the possibility of further explosions from fireworks also interfered with the fire service's rescue operation. "It's very dangerous for the firemen to go in, because the government don't want any of these men to be injured", they said.

Ibrahim Farinloye from the National Emergency Management Agency reported one fatality to '''' (AFP), saying: "We pulled out a body from the building". Nicolas Adesile, of the Red Cross, told the same news agency that as many as thirty people have been treated thus far.


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