​Fire Incident: Western Marine Customs Debunk Media Exaggerations

BY FUNMI ALUKO

The Western Marine Command of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has clarified that the fire incident that broke out earlier today was swiftly contained within the command’s conference room, refuting earlier media reports claiming the inferno spread across the building and destroyed property worth millions of naira.

A fire service truck at the scene of fire outbreak at the command, putting out the inferno.

​The incident the command explained was triggered by an electrical spark from a faulty distribution box shortly after the command switched over to generator power following a public electricity outage.

​A senior insider operative who does not wished to be identified explained that the electrical box had previously exhibited signs of malfunctioning and had been repaired on two separate occasions by command electricians prior to today’s spark.

​”It was almost at the time we switched to the generator after a power outage that it started sparking, and almost immediately turned into fire,” the source explained.

“What reinforced the speed and intensity of the fire was the interior material of the conference room, which is made mostly of wooden planks and plywood.”

Outdone CAC of the Command, Comptroller Patrick Ntandi Rtd, left, and his successor, Deputy Comptroller Jonah during the handover and takeover ceremony at the conference room earlier today.

​Contrary to speculative reports alleging multi-million naira losses and widespread destruction across multiple sections of the command structure, internal sources confirmed that the contents of the affected room were limited to basic wooden furniture, including tables and chairs, with no high-value assets or critical fixtures involved.

​Personnel on duty acted promptly to manage the outbreak alongside officers from the Fire Service, who arrived on the scene to completely extinguish the fire and prevent it from advancing beyond the conference room walls.

​Newly resumed Acting Controller of the Command, Deputy Comptroller of Customs, Timothy Jonah, acknowledged the incident, describing it as an unfortunate event while reassuring stakeholders that internal measures and safety protocols are being strengthened to prevent future occurrences.

Although prior reports quoted Jonah as sating that internal committee is expected to review the faulty distribution box and overall electrical setup at the facility, our source said he is not in a position to confirm or deny such statement.