Lagos State Government has warned against unsafe fuel storage at homes, markets and workplaces, which can result in fire, with resultant loss of lives and property.
This warning was made by the Director General, Lagos State Safety Commission, Mr. Lanre Mojola, following SOS messages received from residents of Festac Town over unsafe sale of fuel on the road, which could endanger lives.
He said the commission was working with the Lagos State task force on monitoring and enforcement against public safety infractions across the state and would come down hard on defaulters.
Mojola said the dry weather, occasioned by the harmattan, coupled with storage of fuel at homes, markets, workplaces and the careless disposal of cigarettes stubs, adulterated fuel, electrical surges and sparks, petrol leakages and illegal wire connections often resulted in fire that could lead to loss of lives and property.
He said the commission as a regulatory agency saddled with ensuring safety of lives and property, carried out its activities through proactive process of policy formulation, setting safety standards, carrying out advocacy programmes to promote safety culture in the state, adding that “this goes a long way to prevent accidents and protect the citizens.”
Mojola highlighted some preventable causes of explosions: “Do not store fuel at home, shops or markets. It is extremely dangerous to place generators on decking of storey buildings; they should be kept outside the building and at a distance.
“Always ensure your generator is switched off before fuelling.
“Endeavour to have a fire extinguisher in your home, shops and markets.
“Do not leave electrical appliances on and unattended to, switch them off when not in use.
“Do not overload sockets with multiple electrical appliances.“Install smoke alarms/detectors in your homes, offices and stores.
In case of emergency, please call 112 or 767.”
He urged the public to support the government to fight fire and gas incidents. (Nation)