No fewer than 48 persons have been given mass burials after a petrol tanker explosion in Agaie Local Government Area of Niger State.
The incident occurred early on Sunday morning when the petrol tanker collided with a trailer truck carrying passengers and cattle from Wudil in Kano State.
The Director General of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency, Abdullahi Baba-Arab, who provided the information on Sunday, also revealed that 48 people whose bodies were burnt beyond recognition had been mass buried in the local government.
According to him, after additional search and rescue operations, 18 more bodies were discovered among the 30 previously reported.
“Following further search and rescue operations, my agency discovered 18 more bodies, which were also burnt to death, and all the dead have been given mass burial,” he said.
Baba-Arab confirmed the accident in a statement on Sunday, saying it occurred about 12.30 a.m. on Lapai-Agaie, 2 kilometres from Dendo Community in Agaie LG.
He also revealed that around 50 animals were burnt alive, and two more vehicles, a crane truck and a pickup van, were captured in the fire.
The NSEMA statements read, “NSEMA has received a report of a deadly tanker explosion that occurred on Sunday, the 8th of September, 2024, at about 12.30 am along Lapai-Agaie, 2 km from Dendo Community in Agaie LGA.
“The incident occurred when a petrol tanker loaded with PMS collided with a trailer truck loaded with travellers and cattle from Wudil in Kano State heading to Lagos. Two other vehicles, a crane truck and a pickup van, were also caught in the incident.
“Over 30 people are already confirmed dead, with over 50 cattle burnt alive. NSEMA’s Rapid Respond Team (RRT), in conjunction with LGEMCs, is still on the scene of the incident, conducting search and rescue operations as more corpses are still trapped inside the trucks.”
