Fire engulfs section of international airport in Lagos

A fire incident has occurred at the international wing of the Murtala Muhammed airport, Lagos.

The fire gutted a section of the airport on Wednesday morning.

The section affected was the primary gateway.

Firefighters were quickly mobilised to contain the outbreak.

The incident affected some operations. At the time of filing this report, passengers and airport personnel are being evacuated from the building.

The fire also affected a section of the administrative office of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN).

“Passengers on MMA Terminal 1 are unable to undergo immigration processing due to network complications,” said Morris Monye on X, formerly known as Twitter.

“Consequently, all passengers are currently unable to proceed with their travel plans. This is as a result of a fire incident that occurred earlier this morning, which has been successfully extinguished.

“Regrettably, passengers cannot be processed at present, causing considerable dissatisfaction among them.”

FAAN REACTS

Reacting to the incident in a statement, Abdullahi Yakubu-Funtua, director of public affairs and consumer protection at FAAN, said a burning lithium inverter battery installation was the cause of the fire.

Yakubu-Funtua said the fire was put out by firefighters, adding that the agency is committed to safety of all passengers.

“At approximately 0723 hours this morning, a suspected electrical spark at the baggage hall ceiling caused the smoke incident that was reported at Terminal 1 of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, located in Ikeja, Lagos,” the statement reads.

“The source of the smoke was identified as burning lithium inverter battery installation at the basement.

“Promptly responding to the situation at 0730hrs, the dedicated fire-fighters from the aerodrome rescue and fire fighting services of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport and the electrical department of the FAAN, initiated immediate action.”