A Delta Airlines flight en route from Lagos, Nigeria, to Atlanta, United States, was forced to make an emergency diversion to Accra, Ghana, following a fire incident in the aircraft’s oven.

According to the spokesperson for the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority, Michael Achimugu, on Thursday, the incident occurred on Tuesday, 23 September, affecting Flight DL055, which had departed from Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos.

He said airline officials confirmed that while the fire was swiftly contained and posed no threat to passengers, the delay caused the crew to exceed their expected duty time, making them unable to continue the journey as scheduled.

Following the unscheduled landing in Accra, the airline initiated rebooking arrangements for stranded passengers. Some were accommodated on a Delta Accra-New York service the same evening, with further passengers rebooked on the following night’s flight.

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He said, “However, some passengers were rebooked on the airline’s Accra-New York flight the same evening, and this effort was repeated on Wednesday night for additional passengers.

“Flight DL055 LOS – ATL finally departed from Accra today, 25 September 2025, at approximately 1200 hrs.”

In a related development, Delta Airlines also cancelled its inbound flight ATL-LOS (Atlanta to Lagos) for Thursday, 25 September.
Though passengers were said to have been informed in advance, “The airline provided hotel accommodations and ground transport for those who still reported to the airport.”

To mitigate the disruption, the airline rebooked 23 affected passengers on Air France, while others were scheduled to travel via British Airways, KLM, and Lufthansa.

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The remaining passengers will be airlifted on Delta’s regularly scheduled flight tomorrow, 26 September, at 11:40 a.m.

He added, “Regarding today’s 25 September 2025 ATL – LOS arrival cancellation, although passengers were duly informed about the cancellation, the airline accommodated those who arrived at the airport by providing transportation to hotels as reported in the flight disruption this morning.

“Twenty-three passengers had been rebooked on Air France, while others would be airlifted on British Airways, KLM, and Lufthansa Airlines. The remaining passengers are scheduled to depart on the airline’s scheduled flight tomorrow, 26 September 2025, at 1140 hrs.”

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Contrary to earlier reports, the Air France flight from Lagos has not been cancelled and is expected to operate at 01:30 a.m.

“Air France flight has not been cancelled as speculated, but would operate at 0130 hrs. Kindly note that I am attending meetings in Montreal, but I have had to constantly leave the hall to make calls and get feedback.

“Follow-up continues. While wishing you safe travels, do not hesitate to reach out to me if there is a further need to,” Achimugu added.

The Nigeria Customs Service has announced the rescheduling of its recruitment pre-test for shortlisted applicants in the Superintendent Cadre, following what it described as “earlier challenges.”

In a notice released on Thursday, the Service said the affected candidates, who had previously received emails, had now been regrouped into four batches — A, B, C, and D.

“All shortlisted Superintendent Cadre candidates should use their NIN to check their Batch, Date, and Time via https://updates.customs.gov.ng,” the notice stated.

The Customs Service emphasised that compliance with the new schedule is compulsory, warning: “Strict compliance with your assigned Batch and Time is mandatory. Failure will lead to disqualification.”

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The notice further clarified that applicants in the Inspectorate and Assistant Cadres would be contacted separately.

“Inspectorate and Assistant Cadre applicants should NOT log in at this stage,” the Service added.

According to the NCS, the pre-test is not meant to determine recruitment outcomes but to help candidates get familiar with the online process.

“The Pre-Test does not affect your recruitment outcome; it is only meant to help candidates familiarise themselves with the system and aid proper planning of the exercise.”

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It also reassured applicants that there would be no changes to the earlier test link.

“All shortlisted Superintendent Cadre candidates should kindly note that the Pre-Test Link is the same as the one earlier sent,” the Service said.

The Customs recruitment drive continues to attract huge interest from Nigerian youths eager for opportunities in the federal workforce, making clarity around the process a top concern.

According to The PUNCH, the rescheduling comes after thousands of applicants were unable to access the portal during the September 22 test.

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Many had complained of repeated “500 Internal Server Error” and “Gateway time-out” messages, with some stranded for hours in cybercafés.

Several applicants took to social media to lament their ordeal. One user, Kiliya (@musa_kiliya), wrote that many candidates “could not access the site for about two to three hours, yet the site still did not open. Most cyber cafés were overcrowded.”

Another, Mario Twinsley, queried why the system failed to handle traffic, asking: “Who are your developers? Are they not aware of load balancing?”

The Customs Service later admitted the failure was due to heavy traffic and assured that technical teams were working to stabilise the portal.

Electricity consumers relying on the national grid may face a prolonged blackout within hours as the National Union of Electricity Employees on Wednesday began a nationwide strike over unresolved labour disputes with the Transmission Company of Nigeria.

The union, in a circular signed by its Acting General Secretary, Dominic Igwebike, directed its members across the country to withdraw their services indefinitely until management addresses long-standing welfare and operational concerns.

According to NUEE, the strike became inevitable after the expiration of an ultimatum issued to TCN, accusing the company of failing to address grievances bordering on poor staff welfare, non-provision of essential tools, and disregard for workers’ rights.

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“Unfortunately, the TCN management has decided to handle these issues with kid gloves and with a lack of regard for the hardworking staff of TCN,” the notice read in part.

“We cannot continue to fold our arms while we watch our rights being violated and the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry going down the drain. To this end, the Union is compelled to withdraw its services”, it added.

The union listed its demands to include, “Implementation of the National Minimum Wage, end to casualisation of workers, provision of working tools and materials, payment of staff salaries owed since April 2025.

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“Provision of operational vehicles, supply of Personal Protective Equipment, last provided in 2021, resolution of issues arising from the unbundling of TCN and payment of outstanding retirement benefits.”

The directive, which takes immediate effect, mandates “total compliance” from all electricity workers nationwide.

The development raises fears of another wave of power outages across the country.

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NUEE had previously shut down operations in June 2024, a move that crippled power supply in many states and forced the Federal Government into emergency negotiations.

Efforts to obtain a reaction from the TCN spokesperson, Ndidi Mbah, proved unsuccessful as she did not respond to calls or messages at the time of filing this report.

The strike comes amid repeated government promises to reform the power sector, which has struggled with low generation, poor infrastructure, and labour unrest despite years of privatisation and interventions.