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Eleven people have sustained varying degrees of burns after a petrol tanker exploded in Oluku, Ovia North-East Local Government Area of Edo State, on Thursday.
The victims were rushed to the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) for treatment. The tanker reportedly fell earlier in the morning but exploded around 1 pm while residents were scooping fuel from it.
According to Punch, an eyewitness said that petrol from the tanker had flowed into nearby drainage channels around shops at Oluku Market. The explosion triggered a fire that spread to shops and affected vehicles in the area.
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The eyewitness, who was also scooping fuel, said he narrowly escaped after a soldier warned him about the risk of a fire.
“I was also among those scooping the fuel. I escaped by whiskers. It was a soldier who called me and drew my attention to the fact that the weather was sunny and the way people rushed to scoop the fuel could ignite a fire.
“As I looked back after he spoke to me, the tanker burst into flames as people around the area ran for their lives. I thank the soldier; if not, I would have been burnt by now,” he said.
The source added that two men from northern Nigeria who were directly beneath the tanker suffered burns. Shops built over the drainage channels were also razed by the fire. Although the full casualty figure remains unclear, the source said 10 people had been taken to UBTH’s emergency unit. The report also stated that the hospital received victims from the scene.
UBTH Chief Medical Director, Professor Idia Ize-Iyamu, led the emergency response, with teams from the accident and emergency and burns units working to stabilise critically injured victims and prevent further deaths.
Meanwhile, Edo State Fire Service personnel were at the scene, working to extinguish the fire.
