Individuals put together our bodies for funeral following a tanker explosion in Majiya city, Nigeria, on Wednesday.
Sani Maikatanga/AP
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Sani Maikatanga/AP
ABUJA, Nigeria — Greater than 140 individuals, together with kids, had been killed and dozens had been injured in Nigeria after an overturned gasoline tanker truck exploded in flames whereas they had been attempting to scoop up gas pouring from the car, emergency providers mentioned Wednesday.
The accident occurred at midnight in Jigawa state’s Majiya city when the tanker driver misplaced management of the car whereas touring on a freeway, police spokesperson Lawan Adam mentioned. Residents rushed to the scene and had been scooping up gas, “sparking a large inferno,” he mentioned.
“Near 140 individuals had been put in a mass grave other than individuals buried in different places,” Nura Abdullahi, head of the Nationwide Emergency Administration Company within the area, instructed The Related Press.
Residents of Majiya had been in mourning on Wednesday as they held a mass burial for the victims. Many of the our bodies had been unrecognizable, emergency providers mentioned.
Individuals collect on the scene of a tanker explosion in Majiya city, Nigeria, on Wednesday.
Sani Maikatanga/AP
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Sani Maikatanga/AP
Lethal tanker accidents are frequent in Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, the place site visitors laws should not strictly enforced in lots of locations and there’s a lack of an environment friendly railway system to move cargo.
It’s also frequent for individuals to salvage gas with cups and buckets to take house after such accidents. The follow has develop into extra frequent due to hovering gas costs, which have tripled for the reason that begin of final yr as the federal government ended pricey fuel subsidies.
The driving force concerned within the accident had traveled about 110 kilometers (68 miles) from neighboring Kano state, police mentioned.
The Jigawa State Emergency Administration Company initially put the loss of life toll at 105, together with those that died whereas being handled at hospitals.
Most different victims had been “burned to ashes” on the scene of the accident, mentioned Dr. Haruna Mairiga, head of Jigawa emergency providers.
“In the event that they knew (concerning the hazard), they wouldn’t have gone to fetch (the gas),” Mairiga mentioned.
He mentioned emergency providers arrived on the scene a number of hours after the accident.
Resident Sani Umar instructed native Channels Tv that the fireplace “unfold so shortly that many couldn’t escape.”
“Individuals had been working in all instructions, screaming for assist,” Umar mentioned.
“This can be a heartbreaking second for us all,” mentioned state police Commissioner Ahmadu Abdullahi.
