Airspace shut, reopens, aircraft diverted over Lagos airport inferno

·         BA, Lufthansa, Emirates diverted to Abuja, Malabo

·         FAAN MD, Kuku, assures travellers of safety

A significant fire outbreak at Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Terminal 1 on Monday led to a temporary shutdown of the Lagos airspace and widespread flight disruptions.

The airspace, however, was opened at about 7.30 pm, with Ethiopian Airlines being the first to take off at 7.40 pm after the aerodrome was opened.

The Nigerian Airspace Management Agency (NAMA) was working to establish a temporary control tower to enable the safe and timely restoration of airport operations as soon as practicable.

The fire started in the server room of Terminal 1 (the old international terminal) and spread to the fourth and fifth floors. No lives were lost, and no injuries have been reported

While the exact cause is still under investigation, initial reports suggest a potential electrical issue.

Inbound flights were instructed to delay departures from their origin airports or remain airborne until the “all-clear” was given.

A crane was successfully deployed to support rescue operations at the control tower, and all fourteen persons initially trapped were safely rescued and fully evacuated from the facility.

The sixth floor of the affected facility had been completely evacuated to support ongoing emergency operations and risk mitigation.

The rescue of the air traffic controllers to safety forced the airport authority to close Lagos airspace, diverting many aircraft approaching for landing to other airports in Accra, Ghana, and Abuja, following a massive fire at the country’s premier airport.

The Managing Director of the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), Mrs Olubunmi Kuku, disclosed that British Airways was diverted to Abuja, while Lufthansa German Airlines and Emirates were diverted to Malabo.

Kuku disclosed that an investigation was ongoing to unravel the cause or causes of the inferno.

She confirmed that all emergency procedures were promptly activated and continues to collaborate with relevant emergency and support agencies to safeguard lives, infrastructure, and operational integrity.

She said, “In terms of the impact, as I mentioned earlier, it has affected some of our operations. We had about three flights diverted. However, the operations will be backed up and running in the next half an hour.”

“In terms of investigations, absolutely, but I think what is critical is to make sure that the fire itself is controlled. Of course, investigations are ongoing. What is important is to make sure that we were able to activate our emergency operating procedures and get everybody out of the building with no fatality due to all of the coordination done by the agencies.”

“With the motivation of emergency responders, who is taking the lead for this to ensure that there are no lapses, to ensure that the situation is brought under control? And the airport will return to its normal operation. So, we do have an EOC, that’s the Emergency Operations Centre, which I mentioned is now active.”

“Most of our departures and even arrivals have already moved. Most departures moved to Terminal 2. We do have four airlines scheduled to move into the temporary terminal. The temporary terminal is ready.”

Wole Shadare