16 Fear Died in Lagos As Tanker Exploded With Fire.

It was a night of horror for residents of Kirikiri Road, Apapa. A petrol tanker laden with 33,000 litres of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) somersaulted, resulting in an inferno that destroyed several buildings, including a bank’s branch, Tuesday night.

By the time the inferno was brought under control early yesterday, no fewer than 15 people –including an expectant woman- had been burnt to death, 11 vehicles destroyed and property worth millions of naira razed.


Eyewitnesses gave a chilling account of how the tragedy occurred.

Azubuike Igboanugo, a trader at Ebunottin Shopping Plaza, said:
“I was standing here; I saw it as it happened. The tanker was coming from Kirikiri town and going to Wilmer, right here at Berger Suya bus stop. Two danfo buses were loading and many people were standing by the suya man to buy meat. Suddenly, we saw the tanker swerving and it appeared it had lost control. When it got to the Suya man, the driver turned the wheel to avoid hitting the buses and the tanker turned over, spilling the fuel. The fire from the Suya sellers stoked the inferno. I saw about 20 bodies, including that of an expectant woman.”

Others said the driver must have lost control due to a brake failure, which prompted him to ram his tanker into the vehicles at the bus stop. As soon as the tanker fell and fuel began to spill into the drainage on Kirikiri Road, fire from the Suya sellers helped to ignite the fuel, causing maximum damage. In Ebunottin Plaza alone, 54 lock-up shops selling motor parts were destroyed.

Director, Federal Fire Service, Ganiu Olayowla and National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) spokesman Ibrahim Farinloye, both said 15 bodies were recovered at the end of rescue operations at 1:04am.

“We had about nine casualties that night, which were handed over to the police and on Wednesday morning, six more bodies were recovered from the debris.
“It involved a petrol tanker, which later spread to four houses and four commercial buses, all burnt down,” Olayiwola said.

Olufemi Osanyitolu, the Director of the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) whose men were also on a search and salvage mission, gave a different account of the incident and the death toll.