Two persons were yesterday killed by a collapsed fence of an abattoir at Oko-Oba in Lagos State while eight others sustained injuries.
The divisional police officer in charge of the Abattoir Police Station Kenneth Iyayi, said that those injured were promptly taken to Merit Hospital at Oko-Oba and the General Hospital, Ile-Epo in Oke-Odo area of the state for treatment.
It was reported that the debris of the collapsed fence were yet to be cleared while the business of slaughtering cows was in progress.
An abattoir worker, Ishiaku Onatunde, told newsmen that the incident was as a result of weak foundation of the fence.
“Ideally, the government should have constructed the fence on a strong foundation knowing that we use a lot of water in our daily routine as slaughterers,” he said.
Onatunde said that the workers had met with the management of the abattoir, Harmony Abattoir Investment Limited, to ask for compensation for the victims of the collapsed fence.
He, however, said that the managers of the abattoir said that the company had no resources to compensate the victims. Also, the Managing Director of Harmony Abattoir Investment simply identified as Mr. Bello confirmed that the death was as a result of the collapsed fence.
But said that he could not give more details about the situation because that would be done by the Lagos State Ministry of Agriculture.
Meanwhile, the Head of the Public Affairs Office in the Lagos State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr. Jide Lawal, said that he was not authorised to give details of the incident; that he would have to be authorised by the Commissioner for the Ministry of Agriculture before he could speak with the press on the matter.
He said that the commissioner was attending an important state executive meeting when newsmen visited the ministry.