The Lagos State Government has announced plans to demolish the fire-damaged Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) building on Lagos Island, warning residents and motorists to keep away from the area during the operation. The Permanent Secretary of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu, announced the plan in a statement on Wednesday. He said access to the area would be restricted during the exercise and that temporary traffic diversions might be introduced.
He urged motorists to use alternative routes and advised residents to obey instructions from emergency responders and traffic officials. The planned demolition follows a fire that gutted the building on Martins Street on 24 December 2025, killing 12 people, according to an earlier report by PREMIUM TIMES. The federal government, through the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), deployed heavy-duty equipment provided by the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) to assist ongoing recovery operations at the site.
NEMA described the multi-agency effort as complex due to the precarious condition of the building. “Significant progress has been recorded with the controlled removal of debris and recovery of four bodies,” the agency said. Recovery operations were coordinated by NEMA alongside CCECC, with supervision from LASEMA, Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA), and other stakeholders.
The agency stated that the recovered bodies have been documented and handed over to the Lagos State Environmental Health Monitoring Unit (SHEMU) for forensic identification and dignified handling. Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu subsequently ordered the building’s demolition following concerns about the safety of the fire-damaged structure. Speaking at the site, the governor confirmed five victims had been identified while three remained unaccounted for as of that time.
He said emergency responders continued to search the debris to ensure no one remained trapped.