Dozens of people have been killed after an oil tanker exploded in Nigeria’s central Niger state, causing the vehicle to slide off the road and spill fuel.
Villagers rushed to collect fuel from the overturned tanker, which suddenly exploded, engulfing them in a huge fire. About 30 people died, while at least 40 were injured to varying degrees.
Many victims were burnt in the fierce fire and the injured were taken to a nearby hospital for treatment.
Despite repeated warnings about the dangers of collecting spilled fuel, tanker explosions are a recurring tragedy in Nigeria.
The accident occurred near Esson and Badegi communities along the Bida-Agai road in Kachcha Local Government Area of ​​Niger State.
Nigeria’s Federal Road Safety Corps agency was quoted by Reuters as saying at least 35 people were killed in the accident, while the local coordinator of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) told AFP news agency that there were “29 dead and 42 injured”.
NEMA officials told the BBC they were responding to the incident but could not confirm the number of people affected.
The governor of Niger State, Mohammed Umaru Bago, condoled with the people, describing the incident as “alarming, unfortunate and pathetic”.
“(It is) disheartening how people continue to approach the downed tanker despite several awareness campaigns,” his chief press secretary, Bologi Ibrahim, said in a statement.
A tanker carrying petroleum products northbound from Lagos in southern Nigeria is said to have met with an accident due to poor road conditions.
Poor road conditions are a major cause of road accidents in the country.
In October last year, there was a death in a fuel tanker explosion 153 People of Jigawa State, North-West Nigeria.
In January this year, a truck carrying about 60,000 liters of petrol overturned near Suleja in Niger State, killing at least 86 people and injuring about 70 others.
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