Family photoshoot saves couple, sons from Lagos inferno

By Folarin Sholaja

A family of four left their Lagos apartment, Monday, for a Yuletide photoshoot minutes before fire destroyed the building.

While the family was posing for pictures at a photo studio about 70 meters away, the fire reportedly started in a kitchen on the top floor of the storey building and wrecked total damage.

While the fire raged on, late afternoon, a resident came to the photo studio and was showing everyone the video of “a house that’s on fire nearby.”

“Instead of you to be helping them quench the fire, you’re shooting the video,” a member of the affected family, the woman of the house, told the talebearer.

It wasn’t until moments when another resident described the exact house that was ablaze that the husband and his wife realised they were one of the victims.

They left their two sons with the photographer and hurried back home to see their house ablaze.

“That’s my house that’s on fire,” the husband was heard shouting as he ran towards the building.

The fire service did not show up until over one hour after the building went up in flames. They were too late.

WATCH: Scenes from fire accident

One fire truck came from Ikeja, and another from Lagos Island. Area boys almost pounced on them for coming late but heavily armed policemen were on hand to avert violence.

Everything on the top floor is history.

Other families were affected by the fire. Most of the occupants of the building were not even home when the sad thing occurred.

A popular bar at the ground floor was also affected.

Also affected was a shop on the ground floor. We heard the shop owner obtained the space not more than two months back.

Barely two hours after the fire was extinguished, another house at 29, Ogundola Street, Ladi-Lak, Bariga was gutted by fire.

Both houses are within walking distance.