A major audit of communications masts and towers by Lagos State government has shown that some 1,200 “most dangerous” giant metal contraptions that pose both environmental and health hazards dot the state skyline, Nigeria CommunicationsWeek can now reveal.
In all, the audit found over 5,000 masts and towers considered defective as some have missing bolts that hold a typical mast or tower of over 10 tons of galvanized iron.
The giant metal works are some of the tallest man-made structures designed to support antennas for telecommunications and broadcasting, including television.
Nigeria CommunicationsWeek also gathered that some of the masts are without the Aircraft warning lights, a clear breach of safety norms while others are overloaded.
But most of the defective masts and towers have one common characteristic; they are built with some of the most inferior materials.
Top official of the Lagos State Infrastructure Maintenance and Regulatory Agency (Lasimra) said that agency has commenced the removal of the “most dangerous” masts across the state after the initial warning order given to defective masts owners to pull them down.
The official said that it is costing the agency about N20, 000 each to pull down the “dangerous masts” to avoid loss of lives and properties.