The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has mobilised the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation (CCECC) to demolish the fire-damaged 22-storey Great Nigeria Insurance (GNI) building on Lagos Island.
The structure was severely damaged by a fire that broke out on December 24, 2025, and the planned demolition is aimed at protecting emergency responders and clearing the site for excavation work.
The development was confirmed in a report by the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), shared via its official X account on Saturday.
According to the NTA, Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu requested federal intervention to safely bring down the high-rise building following the Christmas Eve inferno.
NEMA officials, led by Air Commodore Usman Bature, Director of Search and Rescue, and Tunde Mohammed, the agency’s Head of Operations in Lagos, accompanied CCECC representatives to the site.
“The National Emergency Management Agency has mobilised the China Civil Engineering Construction Corporation to the site of the Great Nigeria House gutted by fire in Marina. This follows a request by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu for federal agencies to assist in safely demolishing the 22-storey building to enable excavation work,” the report stated.
CCECC has reportedly deployed equipment to the site and is awaiting final directives to begin demolition.
