By George Oshogwe Ogbolu

The Canadian High Commission in Abuja, on Tuesday announced the suspension of its operations after a fire incident at the commission on Monday.

According to NAN, no staff except security personnel were seen at the high commission, situated at 13010G, Palm Close, Diplomatic Drive, in the Central Business District of Abuja.

In a post on its X handle (formerly known as Twitter), the high commission announced a temporary suspension of its operations.

The announcement disclosed that no operations towards the High Commission’s provision of visa and immigration services for persons seeking to visit or emigrate to Canada.

Canadian Embassy Fire: Witness Explains How Two People Died In Tragic Incident

The embassy also stated that there is no offer of services to Canadians visiting and living in Nigeria and to Canadians in Equatorial Guinea, as well as Sao Tome and Principe

Such services include adoption and surrogacy, birth abroad, citizenship services, marriage abroad, passport services, notarial services, studying abroad, and visa and immigration services.

A security operative at the duty post of the commission told NAN that no staff was available at the premises of the high commission, saying “Come tomorrow Wednesday, November 8.”

Melanie Joly, the foreign minister of Canada, released a statement on X shortly after the explosion, expressing her condolences for the deaths.

She said: “We can confirm there was an explosion at our High Commission in Nigeria. The fire is out and we are working to shed light on what caused this situation. I send my heartfelt condolences to the families of the 2 people killed in this tragedy.

“We can confirm there was an explosion at our High Commission in Nigeria. The fire is out and we are working to shed light on what caused this situation. I send my heartfelt condolences to the families of the 2 people killed in this tragedy.”

A fire incident occurred at the High Commission of Canada’s building in Abuja, Nigeria, on Monday.

Information gathered by Naija News indicated that the fire broke out at 13010G, Palm Close, Diplomatic Drive, Central Business District in Abuja, just minutes before noon.

A source who provided an account of the incident to journalists hours after the event explained that two other individuals had sustained injuries, apart from those who had lost their lives.

The source clarified that the fire had started a few minutes after 11:00 a.m. in the generator house while the power generating plants were undergoing maintenance.