I write this with a heavy-heart reflecting on the devastating fire at Afriland Towers, Broad Street, Lagos. A seemingly avoidable incident that claimed lives, fractured trust and forced us all to look more critically at what we mean by a “well” workplace.
THE TRAGEDY:
On Tuesday 16 September 2025, a fire broke out in the inverter room in the basement of Afriland Towers at about 1:20 p.m.
The flames and, even more critically, the thick smoke spread rapidly, cutting off evacuation routes, severely reducing visibility, and creating panic among occupants.
Tragically, 20 people reportedly have been confirmed dead (including staff of United Capital Plc and FIRS) while many others got injured.
Eyewitnesses reported people forced to escape through windows, or jump, because emergency staircases and exits were either inaccessible or compromised by smoke.
STRUCTURAL REGULATORY STRUCTURES THAT WORSENED THE OUTCOME
From reporting so far, several design, maintenance and regulatory gaps made the catastrophe possible:
1. Location of the fire’s origin:
The fire began in the inverter room in the basement. Electrical rooms and power infrastructure are high risk by nature, especially in basements where smoke can accumulate and exit routes are fewer.
2. Smoke management and ventilation:
Though there are safety features (extractors, alarms, extinguishers) installed, reports indicate smoke spread quickly and compromised routes, making many staircases or exits unusable or invisible. Without effective smoke containment and extraction, even a fire that is “contained” can still kill via smoke inhalation.
3. Alarm & detection systems vs occupant awareness:
Fire alarms were present and in some cases triggered, but not everyone heard them. That suggests issues with sound levels, location of alarm units, possibly maintenance or the human factor of building occupants not being fully familiar with what to do.
4. Evacuation routes & emergency exits limitations:
Although there are two emergency staircases and multiple exits on ground, smoke made them impassable for many. Also, windows became de facto escape routes. Those kinds of impromptu escapes are always more dangerous.
5. Maintenance, readiness and staff training:
There are reports of regular drills and certification. However, when the actual event happened, there was confusion, blocked or unclear paths, delayed reaction in some quarters. That suggests either drills didn’t fully match reality, or there were gaps between “what’s documented” and “what people really do / know under panic.”
6. Regulatory enforcement & oversight:
Several commentators have pointed out that Nigeria’s building safety regulations and fire codes exist but enforcement is inconsistent. Also, overlapping or unclear mandates (who inspects, how often, who holds liability) weaken compliance.
WHY THIS MATTERS FOR WORKPLACE WELLNESS
Workplace wellness is usually discussed in terms like mental health support, flexible hours and ergonomic furniture — all valid and important. But the Afriland Towers collapse reminds us that the foundation of wellness aldo includes:
- Physical safety — ensuring the building, its power systems, evacuation routes, alarms, etc., are designed and maintained to keep people alive in emergencies
- Preparedness & training — people must know what to do, not just in theory, but in practice, under stress
- Trust & transparency — employees need to believe that their safety is a priority; that any shortcuts in infrastructure or response are unacceptable
- Emergency Support — medical, psychological, financial support for those affected — both survivors and bereaved
Without those in place, all other wellness initiatives become superficial. Safety is clearly NOT optional.
THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP & ACCOUNTABILITY — Enter Tony Elumelu
Leaders cannot outsource responsibility for safety. In this case:
Tony Elumelu, Chairman of UBA and Heirs Holdings (owner of Afriland Properties), personally responded. He cut short his trip to the United States (where he was due to attend the UN General Assembly), expressed deep sorrow at the loss of colleagues, and ordered support for bereaved families.
He acknowledged that the people who work in these buildings are more than assets or statistics … they are part of a mission, part of the culture. That is powerful because when leadership treats people as truly “irreplaceable,” it shifts priorities: investments in safety become non-negotiable.
Leadership also means ensuring full accountability. Ensuring investigations are transparent, recommendations implemented and learning applied to prevent recurrence. Mr. Elumelu’s involvement gives a focal point of what responsible corporate leadership looks and sounds like; but the burden should not fall on him alone. Regulatory bodies, facility managers and employees all share in it.
WHAT SHOULD BE DONE GOING FORWARD
To prevent tragedies like that of the Afriland Towers fire, these are some critical steps:
- Mandatory, independent safety audits for all high-rise and large public/commercial buildings
- Stronger enforcement of fire codes, with penalties for non-compliance
- Improved smoke containment systems: extractors, sprinklers, pressurised staircases, backup power for safety systems
- Frequent, realistic drills so that people know what to do even in low visibility, high stress situations
- Transparent reporting of incidents, lessons learned, structural vulnerabilities
- Corporate policies that treat safety as part of wellness plans — e.g. regular equipment checks, maintenance, staff training & readiness
CONCLUSION
The Afriland Towers fire is a painful reminder that wellness at work is not a bonus … it’s a fundamental responsibility.
It is leadership, design, regulation, culture and individual readiness all stitched together. Where any of those stitches is weak, people die. Literally and figuratively. People’s lives are at stake.
To honour those lost, we must do more than mourn. We must rebuild how we think about safety. We must hold ourselves and our institutions to higher standards.
Only then can true workplace wellness exist…a wellness where people don’t just grow, but survive and feel genuinely safe.
