A block of classrooms at Limawa Day Secondary School in Minna, Niger State, was gutted by fire on Thursday evening, with suspected hemp smokers blamed for the incident.
The blaze was quickly brought under control by firefighters from the Niger State Federal Fire Service. Eyewitnesses reported that a group of young boys frequently gathered on the school premises to smoke hemp, raising suspicions about the fire’s origin.
Ibrahim Mohammed, an eyewitness, shared his account of the events leading to the fire. “These boys always come here to smoke weed, and with this harmattan season, things catch fire easily. Yesterday, they dropped a burning butt in one of the classrooms, which eventually ignited the fire,” Mohammed said.
He added, “The other day, some colleagues and I were here for a programme, and we saw these boys smoking. When we were leaving, we moved in a group to avoid any confrontation with them. This fire outbreak must have been caused by their reckless actions.”
The school principal, Datti Dauda, confirmed the fire, stating that he was alerted by a neighbor. “I received a call from our neighbor, the headmaster, who told me that the school was on fire. I immediately contacted the fire service, and they responded promptly to extinguish the flames,” Dauda said.
While the cause of the fire is still under investigation, Dauda ruled out electrical faults. “There are no electrical connections to that part of the building. My suspicion is that the fire may have been caused by some of the neighbors or intruders, as the school premises are encroached upon,” he explained.
Dauda estimated the damage to be over ₦1.5 million, considering the cost of repairing the damaged materials.
A senior fire service official commended the prompt response of his team. “One of our officers raised the alarm, and we deployed immediately. It took us less than five minutes to arrive at the scene and put out the fire,” he said.
Authorities are urging residents to remain vigilant, particularly during the harmattan season, to prevent similar incidents in the future.
