The Nigerian Railway Corporation has initiated the fumigation of its offices at its headquarters and the Lagos district as well as other parts of its compound.
It disclosed that the disinfection of railway facilities, office premises, workshops, station buildings and residences in Lagos was being undertaken as part of measures to deal with the risk of exposure to COVID-19 currently disrupting the world including Nigeria.
It explained in a statement that it started with Lagos because the state had been the worst hit by the COVID-19 pandemic in Nigeria going by statistics from the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control.
The Director of Operations at the NRC, Mr Niyi Alli, was quoted as declaring that the fumigation of wagons and coaches would be done when they were to start operation.
He said that other districts and Abuja would follow after the NRC headquarters and Lagos district offices and quarters.
It stated that the corporation had engaged the “Services of environmental health professionals in collaboration with the Environmental Health Department of the Lagos Mainland Local Government in driving the process of active and targeted decontamination.”
It added, “This process is at the instance of the NRC management and commitment backed by resources to facilitate the logistics, manpower, potent decontaminants and the entire project delivery.”
The NRC said the process, which commenced on Saturday, April 18, would continue till every place mapped for disinfection had been covered.
Apart from the quarters in Ebute Meta, the disinfection would cover the quarters at Tejuosho, Rotimi, Mushin, Ikeja and Apapa, it stated.
According to the statement, the NRC management led by Fidet Okhiria remains committed to the safety of its workers, customers and train passengers, hence the organisational intervention and mitigation to deal with the risk of exposure to COVID-19.
It said, “The NRC management will continue to play its role as a responsible and proactive organisation committed to public safety especially during this critical pandemic period in the life of our nation and of the world at large.”
