Generator sparks fire outbreak in YABATECH, female hostel razed

A fire outbreak caused by a generator has razed the first floor of Bakassi Hostel at Yaba College of Technology, Lagos.

TheCable Lifestyle learned that the incident took place in the early hours of Wednesday.

A student of the institution who was affected by the fire outbreak said: There was no light when we woke up in the morning and we normally put on the generator by 5am to prepare for classes.”

“A girl whose room was closest to where the generator is located noticed a spark but initially ignored it,” the student said.

A second spark was what resulted in the fire which razed the entire first floor of the female hostel.

The student said that many undergraduates unsuccessfully attempted to put out the fire using a fire extinguisher.

Hence, they frantically called the fire service who arrived long after the fire had covered the first floor of the hostel.

“Fire department came later but because there was no water in the school and they also had no water, so they couldn’t do anything,” the student added.

It took over an hour for the fire service to find water to salvage what was left of the first floor.

The student further noted that Yabatech has been suffering from water scarcity for the past month.

When TheCable Lifestyle visited the institution, the fire had subsided but hadn’t been totally put out.

Students were noticeably in a state of despair over their lost properties and academic materials.

“People trying to help out had to go to another hostel, fetch water in buckets and climb four flights of stairs to get to the fire.”

“I literally sat and watched my hostel burn,” the student added.

Officials of the fire service are currently putting out the remaining fire.