Tragedy struck Akankan, Ede North Local Council of Osun State, in the early hours of yesterday when a fire claimed the lives of a Nigeria Customs officer, Tijani Kabiru, his wife, and four of their children.
Though details of the incident were sketchy at press time, sources informed The Guardian that the fire outbreak may have been triggered by an explosion from a solar power device.
The tragic incident plunged residents of the Akankan area into mourning, with neighbours and others lamenting the gruesome deaths and discussing the incident in hushed tones.
Confirming the incident, the Director of Osun State Fire Service, Olaniyi Ismaila Alimi, through the agency’s Public Relations Officer, Mr Adekunle Ibraheem, said the fire began around 3:21 a.m.
“We were informed of the incident via a distress call at about 3:21 a.m., and our team from the Ede Zonal Command proceeded to the scene, supported by a backup team from the Fire Service Headquarters in Abere,” Alimi said.
“The fire occurred at Custom Tijani Kabiru Road, Akankan area, Ede North Local Council. Incidentally, the street was named after the deceased, who was a Customs officer from the Oyo/Osun Command.
“Mr Tijani Kabiru, reported to be in his late 40s, and his wife, in her early 40s, lost their lives in the inferno, suspected to have started about an hour before we received the distress call.
“They also lost four of their children, three boys and a girl, aged between 10 and three years. Their bodies were handed over to men of the A’ Division of the Nigeria Police Force.
“Only one child, a 13-year-old son, survived the incident,” Alimi added.
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