Fire guts section of National Assembly building

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A section of the Senate wing of the National Assembly was gutted by fire on Wednesday shortly after members of the Senate Committee on the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) concluded the screening of Zainab Marwa as the North-east representative on the commission’s board.

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The fire originated from the kitchen area attached to Hearing Room 107, where the Senate Committee on the NDDC conducted the screening exercise.

PREMIUM TIMES gathered that the explosion of a microwave oven triggered the incident, which occurred when the microwave was left unattended in the kitchen compartment of the committee room.

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No casualties were recorded, and no documents or valuable property were destroyed before the fire was successfully extinguished.

Witnesses said lawmakers, staff and other occupants in the vicinity hurried to safety after smoke was seen billowing from the committee room.

Meanwhile, the committee chairman, Asuquo Ekpenyong, who represents Cross River South Senatorial District, and the senator representing Kwara Central, Salihu Mustapha, remained at the scene and coordinated efforts to contain the fire, preventing it from spreading to other sections of the National Assembly complex.