80 die in Nigeria’s petrol tanker fire

Eighty bodies have been found at the scene of a fuel tanker which burst into flames as people scrambled for petrol in a village in Rivers.

FRSC Sector Commander, Dr Kayode Olagunju, in a text message to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), said that the bodies were recovered as of 11.45 a.m. at Okobe, 11 km from Ahoada-Mbiama, in Ahoada West Local Government Area.

According to him, four vehicles, including the tanker, were involved in a crash early on Thursday, but the tanker caught fire when the people rushed for “free fuel.”

“People were scooping fuel from the tanker when it exploded, casualty figures definitely high, and about 20 injured persons already taken to the hospitals.

“Thirty-four motor-cycles also got burnt,’’ he added.

Earlier, police spokesman, Ben Ugwuegbulam could not give the exact number of casualties: “As I speak to you, we do not know the number or extent of casualties at the scene.’’

He said a team of policemen and other security agents had been dispatched to the scene.

“We have cordoned off the area to ensure that miscreants do not take laws into their hands. We also want to know what exactly caused the inferno,’’ he said.

However, a message dispatched to NAN by the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), stated that the petrol-carrying tanker crashed with three other vehicles, 11 km from Ahoada-Mbiama on the east-west road in Rivers.

According to the Rivers Sector Commander of FRSC, the tanker did not immediately burst into flames, and as a result, people scrambled for “free fuel’’.

“People were scooping fuel from the tanker when it exploded, casualty figures definitely high, and about 20 injured persons already taken to the hospitals.

“Thirty-four motor-cycles also got burnt,’’ he said.