UPDATED: One dead in Lagos-Abeokuta tanker explosion

A Friday morning tanker explosion at Ajegunle Bus Stop, along the Lagos-Abeokuta expressway, claimed one life and destroyed at least three vehicles, the Lagos Fire and Rescue Service said.

The tanker, carrying petrol, reportedly overturned while attempting to enter a filling station by the expressway and spilled its contents..

Ibrahim Farinloye, the Southwest Coordinator of NEMA, said the sole fatality is a 15-year-old, Oluwatobi Lawal, who was preparing for his WAEC and JAMB examinations.

The Director of the Lagos Fire and Rescue Service, Margeret Adeseye, said in a statement that they received the report of the fire at 2:16 a.m., from a tanker meant to service one Ayinde Oil filling station at Ajegunle.

“Unfortunately, a male adult was recovered and suspected dead, likewise three various brands of vehicles involved in the Fire aside the tanker and shops,’’ the statement read.

The tanker “accidentally spilled its 45,000 liters PMS contents while negotiating a bend to the station before resulting in fire from the nefarious activities of scoopers at the Toll Gate end, causing it to spread through some roadside makeshift shops to its source at Ajegunle Bus Stop.

She said the situation was, however, brought under control by firefighters from Agege, Ikeja, and Alausa.

‘Injured victims’

Joseph Akinsanya, the FRSC, Agbado Unit Commander, said the fire destroyed ten shops.

He explained that the tanker, with no registration number, coming from Lagos, was trying to enter a filling station when it suddenly overturned and caught fire.

The unit commander attributed the cause of the incident to leakage that spilled the content on the road.

“Unfortunately, one person was burnt beyond recognition; many people, the number, which is yet to be ascertained, were injured, while ten shops were also burnt.

“However, some of the injured victims were taken to a nearby hospital, and Ota General Hospital, while the corpse had been deposited at Ifo General Hospital, Ogun,” he said.

Mr Akinsanya advised motorists to drive cautiously and obey traffic rules and regulations as they have diverted away traffic from the scene of the incident.

He also implored them to cooperate with traffic managers that were on the ground to manage the situation in order to reduce the time spent in the gridlocks.

The unit commander said the FRSC personnel and other sister agencies carried out the rescue operation and could extinguish the fire with the help of the Lagos State Fire Service.