Alhaja Mistura Ahmodu, the 82-year-old woman, who was rescued from a three-storey building that collapsed on Swamp Street, Lagos Island, on Wednesday, is dead.

Ahmodu's granddaughter, Shukura Ishola, told PUNCH Metro on Thursday that the octogenarian, who hailed from Ilorin, Kwara State, passed on around 5pm on Wednesday at the Lagos Island General Hospital, alleging that medical personnel at the hospital did not attend to her promptly.

Ahmodu had been placed on oxygen and rushed to the hospital after she was rescued from the rubble on the fateful day around 2pm - five hours after the building collapsed.

The Punch correspondent had reported that prior to the incident, the building had posed a threat for years.

It was also reported that five other residents trapped in the collapse, were rescued and rushed to hospitals in the area.

Three of them with minor injuries were treated and discharged a few hours later. But Ahmodu, who broke her thigh, was not so lucky.

Shukura, her granddaughter, alleged that the woman was left unattended to for a few hours.

She said, "The doctors in that hospital did not take care of her on time. We were told to buy some drugs and they abandoned her. My brother and I went to get the drugs. When we came back with the drugs around 3.30pm, grandma was still alive."

However, Shukura's father, Alhaji Tajudeen Ishola, said the workers were hospitable.

He said, "She spoke with us around 4pm. She said she was thirsty and a doctor told us to buy a bottle of drink, which she drank. We were preparing an X-ray on her thigh when everything changed. She died at about 5pm. She was well taken care of at the hospital. She was 82."

The daughter of the deceased, Alhaja Fatimat Ishola, who was in the bathroom when the building collapsed, said, "We lived on the first floor. I was in the bathroom while Mama (Ahmodu) was in her room when the building collapsed. It was God that saved me."

A resident and businessman, Saidi Balogun, lamented that some miscreants cashed in on the incident to steal.

He said, "It is surprising that some people use a situation like this to steal. Out of the 40 wrist watches I kept at home, I was able to recover only six. The N480,000 I kept in my cupboard has been stolen."

Some emergency officials told PUNCH Metro that rescue mission had ended.

The General Manager, Lagos State Safety Commission, Mr. Fouad Oki, on Thursday, said about 15 houses had been sealed in the community.

"So far, we have sealed over 15 houses. We want to know the structural integrity of these buildings. If the material laboratory result shows that the buildings are okay, we will reopen them. But if it states otherwise, we will direct the owners of the structures to pull them down."

Lagos developers set up committee

The Association of Real Estate Developers of Lagos State (AREDOLS) says none of it members was involved in incidences of building collapse in the state.

Chairman of the association, Mr. Nureni Akinsanya, said the three-storey structure that collapsed on the Lagos Island was not built by his members.

Akinsanya said, "The property was not built by a developer. The area where the incident occurred has drainage problem. The renovation works carried out by its owner were without professionals' input."

He said in order to prevent a recurrence, the association had set up a nine-man committee to collaborate with the Lagos State government to rid the metropolis of distressed buildings.

He also called on the state government to commence integrity test on all adjoining property in the locality where the collapse occurred.

He assured that the association was ready to cooperate with the government to ensure that his members comply with all regulations concerning physical development planning in Lagos.cc