BREAKING: Panic at Lagos airport after fire outbreak, flights diverted

Following a fire at the facility, the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) has diverted flight operations from Terminal 1 of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos to the D Wing.

The fire outbreak occured at the E54 Passenger Air Bridge at the domestic wing of the Airport.

The incident occurred at 5:29hrs on Thursday, according to a press release issued by Obiageli Orah, FAAN’s head of public affairs and consumer protection.

According to the statement, the fire, however, was brought under control by the Airport Rescue and Firefighting Services (ARFFS) at 06:41hrs while efforts to ventilate the smoke from the building were in progress.

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“At 05:29 hrs, smoke was detected billowing from the E54 Bridge, leading electrical engineers to immediately cut off power to the entire E Wing. The Airport Rescue and Firefighting Services (ARFFS) team was quick to respond, arriving at the scene by 05:30 hrs. Initial suspicions point to sparks from an electrical unit as the cause, but a thorough investigation is ongoing to ascertain the cause of the fire.

“The incident, which had escalated into a fire, was brought under control by 06:41 hrs. Efforts to ventilate the smoke from the building are in progress. In the meantime, all flight operations in Terminal 1 of MMA have been diverted to the D Wing. More details will follow shortly,” Orah stated.

BREAKING: Panic at Lagos airport after fire outbreak, flights diverted

“The appellant herein intends to and do hereby wholly withdraw her appeal against the respondent in the above-mentioned appeal,” the notice partly read.

“This notice of withdrawal is predicated on the fact that on the 17th of April 2024, the application filed by the appellant herein was overtaken by the decision of the same high court of Kogi State.

The EFCC is prosecuting Bello on 19 counts bordering on alleged money laundering, breach of trust, and misappropriation of funds to the tune of N80.2 billion. The matter is before Justice Emeka Nwite of the Federal High Court in Abuja.

EFCC hands over recovered transmission equipment, buildings to Enugu govt

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC on Wednesday, released 14 properties initially forfeited to the Federal Government to Enugu State Government, following the request by the Governor Peter Mbah administration.

The properties were handed over to the Governor Mbah, by the Executive Chairman of EFCC, Mr Ola Olukoyede, during a brief ceremony at the agency’s corporate headquarters in Abuja.

This was even as Governor Mbah assured that the recovered assets would be used to the optimum benefit of the people of Enugu State.

Speaking at the event, Olukoyede, who disclosed that the road to the forfeiture dated back to 2007, said the event spoke of the mutually beneficial relationship existing between the federal government and states.

Commending Dr. Mbah “for the great work he is doing in Enugu State”, the EFCC Chairman said the President was very much interested in the state-of-the-art hospital that the Mbah administration proposed to build in Enugu State, saying the structures for medical facilities among the released assets would go a long way in helping to realise the Mbah vision for the benefit of not just Enugu State, but the entire country and beyond.

“What we are witnessing today testifies to a symbiotic relationship that should exist between the federal government and the state governments. The essence of our meeting here today is for us to handover properties that were forfeited to the federal government, which of course belong to Enugu State people, back to the people. It shows that governance can work in Nigeria.

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“If you look at the history of this particular matter, it takes us back to 2007 when we started the prosecution. So, we are looking at about 17 years since the matter has been on. Eventually some of the properties were forfeited and since then, the EFCC has been managing those properties even though the titles of quite a number of the properties have been revoked by the Enugu State government,” Olukoyede said.

Earlier in his remarks, Governor Mbah, who noted that the properties were forfeited not to his state but to the federal government, expressed gratitude to President Bola Tinubu for making it possible for the assets to be returned to the government and people of Enugu State.

“The importance and significance of this event can never be lost on us and we do not also take it for granted. Those assets were forfeited to the federal government. And this brings me to another gratitude that I want to convey here today. So, I want to acknowledge and recognise the important role played by the President, His Excellency Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Without the proactiveness and speed at which he acted on our request to cede these assets back to the people and government of Enugu State, we wouldn’t have been here today. Therefore, I want to thank him most sincerely for granting our request for these assets that were forfeited to the federal government to be ceded back to Enugu State.

“I want to assure us that those properties would be used for the benefit of the people of Enugu state. All the assets without any exemption, and they would be deployed to optimum use for the benefit of the people of Enugu state.”

He also lauded Olukoyede’s initiatives at making the EFCC a strong institution and the role of the EFCC in the release of the properties to the state.

“I will not end this remark without acknowledging the work the EFCC chairman and his team are doing in strengthening this very important institution. Thank you very much particularly for the effort that you have put in to make today a reality,” the governor stated.

The properties comprise houses, transmission equipment for radio and television stations, a building for medical operations, among others.

EFCC hands over recovered transmission equipment, buildings to Enugu govt