Scores of persons have perished in balls of flame following a petrol tanker explosion along Dikko-Maje Road in the Suleja Local Government Area of Niger State.
The Daily Crucible learnt that 50 people were burnt to death and many others gravely injured in the inferno which occurred on Saturday morning while trying to scoop up fuel after a fallen petrol tanker spilt its contents onto the tarred road.
The state Federal Road Safety Commander, Kumar Tsukwam, confirmed the incident to reporters in Minna, the state capital.
Tsukwam said people scrambling for spilt fuel and those who came forward to rescue them were engulfed in ferocious flames.
He said, “More than 50 people lost their lives in the tragic incident.”
Also, the Director General of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency, Abdullahi Baba-Arah, said the incident happened at about 9 am on Saturday, adding that the explosion occurred when the PMS came in contact with a generator used to effect the transfer of the flammable material from the fallen tanker to another one.
He explained that the process triggered a huge explosion that claimed over 50 lives.
He said, “Those injured have been moved to the hospital for treatment while efforts are being made to recover the corpses of the deceased.”
