Passengers and staff at the Sam Mbakwe Cargo Airport were thrown into panic Monday afternoon as fire broke out on the arrival section of the Airport.
The cause of the fire was not known as at the time of filling this report, but a source at the Airport said there was an going renovation at the arrival hall, which was totally razed.
The inferno, which raged for about one hour, started around 2:10pm.
It took efforts by men of the Fire service and airport workers to put out the fire.
The source said: “It was a mysterious fire outbreak. It happened at the arrival department of the airport where the authority was carrying out renovation work.
“It would have caused bigger havoc but for the arrival of men of the fire fighters save the situation.
“It started around 2:10pm and raged for 50 minutes. It damaged equipment and infrastructure but the rescue work assisted in savaging the situation.”
The Police spokesperson, Orlando Ikeokwu, said he wasd not aware of the fire incident.
But General Manager, Corporate Affairs of FAAN, Mrs. Henrietta Yakubu, confirmed the incident in a statement in Lagos.
Yakubu said the fire started at about 2.00pm but was however curtailed swiftly by officers of the Aerodrome Rescue and Fire Fighting Services Department of FAAN.
An inferno on Monday affected some parts of the terminal building of the Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport, Owerri in Imo.
Mrs Henrietta Yakubu, General Manager, Corporate Affairs, FAAN, confirmed the incident in a statement in Lagos.
Yakubu said the fire started at about 2.00p.m but was however, curtailed swiftly by officers of the Aerodrome Rescue and Fire Fighting Services Department of FAAN.
“There was no casualty and normal operations has since resumed at the airport.
“The authority has commenced preliminary investigations into the cause of the incident,” she said.
Yakubu said that FAAN was committed to its core values of safety, security and comfort.
Meanwhile, Governor-elect of the State, Mr. Emeka Ihedioha, visited the affected areas of the terminal building of the Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport, Owerri, which was gutted by fire.
He subsequently wrote on his official Twitter, saying: “I just left the Sam Mbakwe Airport in Owerri, where I came to inspect the level of damages done by the fire incident that happened some few hours ago.”