TRAGEDY struck in the early hours of Thursday in Osun, when the incumbent chairman of the Nigerian Union of Local Government Employees (NULGE), in Ayedaade local government area of the state, Mr Tajudeen Alabi was burnt to death in a fire incident.
Credible sources informed our correspondent that the inferno, which started from some shops located on Odeyinka Road, Ikire, in Irewole local government, around 1.00am spread to his apartment and the victim was trapped and burnt to death.
Alabi, whose age could not be ascertained as of the time of filing this report was also said to have lost personal belongings estimated at millions of naira to the fire incident.
One of the residents of the area, where the tragic development occurred, simply identified as Yinka hinted that the fire started around 1.00 am, following what he described as “power surge”, from the electricity provider.
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According to him, “we were all asleep when they brought to light around 1.00am. Suddenly, we heard people screaming and shouting for help, but the locked shops and the deceased’s house prevented us from getting close to the scene of the fire. We initially thought it was something else but when we saw smoke, we forced the door open and boys in the area assisted by pouring water to quench the fire”.
Confirming the death of Alabi to journalists in Osogbo, former Executive Secretary, Ayedaade local government, Mr Oduwole Basiru Iyanda expressed shock over the gruesome death of the NULGE chairman in the local government, just as he described the incident as very unfortunate.
However, he implored people of the council and the state to be conscious of safety and security in their respective residences by putting off electrical appliances, not in use, most especially in the night.