The Director-General (DG) of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Dr Oluwaglfemi Oke-Osanyintolu, has announced that the agency responded to no fewer than 822 emergencies in the State in six months.
He disclosed this at the inauguration of the Inter-Agency Technical Working Group for emergency and disaster management personnel in Lagos, on Wednesday.
Oke-Osanyintolu added that the agency and its relevant stakeholders responded to 822 emergencies from January 1 to June 30, as against the 1024 incidents it responded to from January – December, 2020.
“Notable amongst these disasters were Baruwa gas explosion, Apapa Oshodi Expressway tanker explosion, Iddo tank farm fire disaster, to mention a few.”
The DG said his agency planned to provide the participants with workable strategies to renew their confidence in rising up to any disaster challenges in the State, in line with the Terms of Reference
“This meeting will also afford us an opportunity of in-depth review and plan of various major actors.
“Also, it will afford us to understand our collective roles in emergency/disaster prevention, preparedness, management, mitigation, response and recovery in the State.”
He recalled that the extant law that established LASEMA charged the agency to coordinate the activities of all its relevant stakeholders, in order to provide adequate and prompt response as well as sustain intervention on all forms of emergency in the state by the stakeholders who could either be primary, secondary or tertiary responders.
Earlier, in his opening remarks, Mr Tayo Gbamgbose-Martins, the Commissioner for Special Duties and Inter-Government Relations, said the participants were critical elements in the emergency system.
“LASEMA is responsible for the overall coordination of emergency management in Lagos and has been working closely with all its stakeholders in achieving this primary responsibility.
“In order to ensure that the agency meet the needs for combating new and emerging threats, there is need for a detailed, structured developmental plan.
“Although, the necessary needs of the agency have been incorporated and in fact some of the activities have already been implemented, There is need for a comprehensive review of the emergency system in the state.”
He, however, reminded everyone that it was the states’ primary responsibility to join hands and ensure that Lagos State remained a safe and conducive environment for its citizens.
The Acting Coordinator, Lagos Terminal Office of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Mr. Ibrahim Farinloye, was of the key dignitaries that graced the occasion.
