A fire outbreak allegedly caused by minors playing with a cooking gas cylinder on Monday gutted parts of a residential building in Omu-Aran, Irepodun Local Government Area of Kwara State.

The PUNCH gathered that the incident occurred at about 12:57 p.m. at Olayinka House along Ibrahim Taiwo Road, Omu-Aran, destroying two flats before firefighters brought the situation under control.

In a statement issued by the agency's Public Relations Officer, Hassan Adekunle, the fire affected a storey building comprising four three-bedroom flats.

Hassan said, "The incident involved a storey building consisting of four flats of three-bedroom apartments each. The fire affected two of the flats before it was successfully brought under control by firefighters at about 13:21hrs.

"Preliminary investigation revealed that the fire outbreak was caused by children playing with a cooking gas cylinder while their parents were away from home."

The PRO further explained that the children reportedly raised the alarm after the fire spread beyond their control, attracting the attention of a passerby who contacted emergency responders.

"It was further gathered that when the fire became uncontrollable, the children ran downstairs crying for help before a passerby noticed the situation and alerted the Fire Service," he said.

He noted that the timely intervention of firefighters prevented the fire from razing the entire building and confirmed that no casualty or injury was recorded during the incident.

"Thanks to the prompt response of firefighters, the remaining parts of the building were saved from total destruction.

"No loss of life or injuries was recorded, as nobody sustained any injury during the incident," he said.

Reacting to the incident, the Director of the Fire Service, Alabi Mohammed, advised parents and guardians to keep children away from gas cylinders, matches, and other flammable materials.

He also urged residents to avoid leaving minors unattended around cooking appliances and stressed the importance of promptly reporting fire incidents to emergency agencies to reduce damage to lives and property.

The latest incident adds to the growing number of fire outbreaks recorded across Kwara State in recent months, with several residential buildings, markets, and business premises reportedly affected in different parts of the state.