Scores injured, 70 shops, 36 houses burnt in Lagos
Tanker drivers continued their reign of terror yesterday, as a truck conveying 33,000 litres of Premium Motor Spirit on Egbe-Idimu Road, skidded off the road and exploded, injuring scores and destroying 36 houses and 70 shops.
The incident was the third in one week, coming after a deadly tanker accident on May 31 in Onitsha, Anambra State and another on June 2 in Iyana Ipaja, Lagos State. No fewer than 69 persons were feared dead and 30 injured in the Onitsha incident while 14 persons were injured; three buildings and 44 shops were destroyed and 14 injured in the Iyana Ipaja inferno.
Eyewitness accounts said yesterday’s accident occurred around midnight when the drivers of two fuel-laden trucks were trying to outrun each other. When they got to a sharp bend, one of the drivers lost control of his truck while the other one went through and zoomed off. Residents numbering over 2,000 in the densely populated area escaped death by a whisker as they were alerted to immediately vacate their homes.
As they speedily evacuated from their homes, the upturned tanker was spilling its content on the road and into the adjoining drains. Within minutes, there was an explosion and a stampede as houses, shops, vehicles and tricycles went up in flames.
When Sunday Telegraph visited the scene, hundreds of residents were seen lamenting their losses. Their mood was that of sadness as they said they virtually picked nothing from the burning houses and shops.
The Lagos State Fire Service, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, State Emergency Management Agency and officers of the Rapid Respond Squad had a hectic time managing the crowd of onlookers, which thronged the scene. Speaking with Sunday Telegraph, Mr. Wakil Hamzat, 55, said he saw the tanker when it lost control and fell into a drain. He said: “I was coming from the area where the accident occurred. Immediately the tanker somersaulted, spilling its contents on the road, something told me that the tanker could explode.
So, I ran to wake my family and other neighbours before it exploded. The fuel flowed through the drains with speed and in a matter of minutes, it exploded and the fire spread from one house to the other.
“We were throwing our children to the other side of the street through a hole to enable them to escape being caught by the fire. Some of our children sustained injuries but we thank God that nobody died in the incident. But we don’t have anything on us again. Our properties and other valuables perished in the fire. Some of our children were lost in the confusion caused by the inferno,” he lamented. Another resident, Mrs. Adamo Yusuf, who operated a restaurant at Idimu Bus Stop, told our correspondents that she had lost houses and shops to the fire.
“I had just left one of the shops but my children and maids were still there preparing to close when the incident occurred. Some of the girls sustained injuries. While trying to scale the fence to the other street, two of the girls broke their legs and hands. I appeal to the government to assist us by providing succour. I took a loan of about N1.5 million to refurbish my shops two weeks ago,” she said.
Mr. Kayode Sanusi, a father of three children resident at No. 15 Ejigbo Road, said they were woken up from sleep by a loud noise and shouts of “fire, fire, fire.” He said, “Before I know what was happening my house was on fire. I had to quickly wake my wife up, pick our children and escaped the raging inferno through the fence of the next house. I was not able to pick a pin from my room till the house was burnt down,” he said.
Mr. Adele Hassan, the landlord of No. 19 Ejigbo Road, said the incident woke him and his tenants from sleep at about 12.30a.m. “I thank God that when we heard of the incident, everybody in my compound woke up and fled before the fire got to my house and destroyed my source of livelihood. I’m a retired civil servant. If the state government can help by rebuilding our houses for us, it will be acceptable to the victims,” he said.
Mrs. Patience Oshan, a mother of six and resident of No. 260 Ikotun Road, also appealed to well-meaning Nigerians to come to her aid, as the situation had thrown her into confusion. The Onisemo-Elemo of Idimu, High Chief Moruf Ojugbele, thanked God that no death was recorded in the incident. Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, who visited the scene, vowed to meet with tanker drivers in the state on the need to comply with the Lagos Road Traffic Law and safety regulations. “This is another unfortunate incident happening within one week.
Unfortunate in the sense that we are beginning to lose a lot of our assets and properties to fire. I have been briefed that there were two tanker drivers actually competing on the road as at midnight as well as a commercial bus driver.
As a result, the tanker driver lost control at the bend and you could see that the contents went as far as five streets. We’ve lost close to 34 houses and 70 shops. We do not want this to repeat itself again.
“We have said it before, we need to address our tanker drivers and start to enforce our traffic laws. I have directed that we will meet with the union of tanker drivers on Monday morning and we must make a pronouncement relating to the usage of our roads.
I commiserate with all the people here. I appeal for calm. We will do immediate relief. We will take an enumeration and see in what ways we can address your pain. We will do everything in our power to help them get back to their normal lives again,” Ambode stated.