A chieftaincy celebration in the Idimu area of Alimosho Local Government, Lagos State, ended in tragedy after four people were electrocuted when a canopy touched a live electric cable.
The incident, which occurred on Anjorin Street on Tuesday, November 11, claimed the life of a truck motor boy, while three party guests sustained varying degrees of injuries.
PUNCH Metro gathered that the party was organised by a resident recently honoured with a chieftaincy title, with several canopies mounted across the street for guests.
Trouble started when a truck transporting sand attempted to drive through the street but was obstructed by one of the canopies stretching across the road.
In a bid to clear the truck’s path, some party attendees and one of the truck’s occupants reportedly attempted to lift the canopy aside.
Eyewitnesses said the metal frame of the canopy made contact with an exposed live wire lying on the ground, resulting in an instant electric shock.
One of the witnesses, Femi Ajiboye, said the victims collapsed immediately after the frame touched the naked cable.
“The coronation celebration had been ongoing for about a week, and the celebrant decided to host his own party after receiving the title.
The truck carrying sand was trying to access a new estate at the far end of the street but couldn’t move because the canopy was blocking it.
“People tried to lift it, not knowing there was a naked wire on the ground. The moment the frame touched the live wire, they were all shocked.
Nobody understood what had happened until they fell,” Ajiboye recounted.
The incident threw the entire celebration into chaos as guests fled the scene.
Another resident, identified as Olajide, said the victims were rushed to the hospital, where the motor boy was pronounced dead on arrival.
“The three guests survived and are receiving treatment, but the motor boy didn’t make it,” he said, adding that the victim’s family later retrieved his remains for burial.
A resident who declined to be named said he saw the deceased barely 30 minutes before the tragedy.
“He had just bought diesel at the filling station. I was shocked when I heard he died shortly afterward,” he said.
When contacted on Sunday, the Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer said she had not been briefed on the incident.
“I contacted the DPO in that axis, and she said no such case was reported,” she stated.
Attempts to get further clarification on Wednesday were unsuccessful, as calls and messages to her phone were not responded to at the time of filing this report.