Banky W, escapes death as his house goes on fire

R n B musician Bankole Wellington, aka Banky W, narrowly escaped death on  Tuesday after fire gutted his house on Admiralty Way, Lekki Phase 1, Lagos State.

The fire reportedly started around 6am, was caused by a faulty air conditioner.

Banky W, who was in bed at the time, was said to have been alerted to the fire after smoke filtered into his bedroom.

The fire was eventually put out by neighbours, who also informed officials of the Lagos State Fire Service.

The firefighters reportedly got to the scene around 7am and joined in the efforts to put out the fire.

Wellington, who later spoke about the incident on Instagram, said he was in the house with his dog at the time.

He said, “I was laying awake in bed at about 6am when I started smelling smoke. I stood up to switch off my TV and AC and realised it was coming from outside my door.

“I opened it (the door) to see that the whole stairway was filled with black smoke and fire was burning stuffs downstairs. The smoke was so much that I couldn’t get down past it to see the source of the flames.

“I rushed back to my room and climbed down from the second floor balcony with my dog. I got help from the amazing workers and neighbours, who helped me to put out the flames.”

He said he later discovered that the fire emanated from the AC in the living room.

While thanking God for sparing his life, Wellington said some of his property, including award plaques, were destroyed by the fire.

“The fire basically burnt some of the stuffs that were around it (the AC)–awards, portraits, and some small electronics. But thank God, Duke (the dog) and I are alive and well. We only had to form James Bond and climb down from the top floor balcony. Thank God for my neighbours and the amazing workers in and around the compound for helping us escape via the balcony, helping put out the fire and helping with the cleaning,” he added.

The Director of the Lagos State Fire Service, Rasak Fadipe, said he would get back to our correspondent on the incident, but he had yet to do so as of press time.