The Chairman of United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA), Tony Elumelu, has expressed deep grief over the deaths of colleagues in Tuesday’s fire at Afriland Towers, Victoria Island, Lagos, and has cut short his trip to the United States.

In a statement personally signed on Wednesday, Elumelu confirmed that a minute’s silence was observed at 12 p.m. in honour of the deceased.

“I am shattered by yesterday’s devastating incident at Afriland Towers that took the lives of our dear colleagues,” Elumelu wrote. “No words can capture the magnitude of this loss — not for their families who loved them, not for the friends who valued them, and not for those of us who worked beside them.

“Yesterday was a stark reminder of what truly matters: our irreplaceable people, those who walk through our doors each day and share our mission.”

Elumelu, who is also the founder of the Tony Elumelu Foundation, had been en route to the United States for the United Nations General Assembly but returned immediately upon learning of the tragedy.