Six persons were feared killed while several others sustained injuries in two separate gas explosions in Lagos State, yesterday.
One of the explosion that occured in
Magodo, which snowballed into a massive fire, took place at a facility
known as Second Coming gas plant, situated in a densely populated area.
It was gathered that two people died in
the Magodo inferno. Some charred bodies found by the perimeter fence of
the gas station were evacuated by officials of the Lagos State Ambulance
Services (LASAMBUS) while those that had various degrees of burns
received first aid there. Another set of victims with severe burns were
immediately moved to the Trauma Centre, Toll Gate for further medical
attention.
According to reports, the fire was
allegedly caused by gas leakage from one of the trucks inside the
popular gas station, which was said to be a destination spot for cooking
gas users around the area. It was further disclosed that the explosion
was caused when a vehicle with faulty exhaust passed by the station.
Many people were injured following the fire, which immediately spread to other properties in the neighbourhood.
As the dark smoke and flame billowed into
sky, men of the Lagos State Fire Service tried frantically to curtail
it from spreading further and claiming more casualties. Motorists and
pedestrians were also advised to take alternative routes to avert
further disaster.
Speaking on the incident, the General
Manager, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), Mr Adesina
Tiamiyu, said they were alerted at about 7.26 am, and on arriving the
scene, it was discovered that the gas plant was on fire. He
disclosed that preliminary investigation by the agency revealed that
three reserviour tanks used for storage of gas and one 33, 000 litre gas
truck in the gas station were engulfed by fire, with a secondary explosion also taking place within the gas station.
“Officials of the Lagos State Fire
Service with four fire trucks and the LRU Fire Unit with two fire trucks
were able to contain the fire from spreading to adjourning buildings.
Other emergency responders on ground were RRS, Federal Road Safety
Corps, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Lagos Neighbourhood
Safety Corps, Red Cross, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Lagos
State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) and the Federal Fire
Service,” he disclosed.
He, however, assured that the situation
was completely under control, adding that the perimeter of the vicinity
was secured and evacuation of people from the scene effected. He also
noted that the officials of Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company
(IKEDC) had also completely isolated power supply from the affected area
to avoid any other incident.
He stressed that proper investigation
would be conducted to ascertain the possible cause of the fire and to
also prevent future reoccurrence of “this unfortunate and avoidable
incident in the state.”
The Director, Lagos State Fire Service,
Mr. Rasak Fadipe, also explained that the concerted efforts of his team
prevented the fire from causing more damages.
Also, an explosion by leaking gas
cylinder at an artisan’s shop in Ajara area of Badagry, killed four
persons and left several others with severe burns. According to our
correspondent, who visited the scene of the incident, three persons, two
men and a woman lay dead at the spot.
Six buildings located near the workshop
and six gas cylinders were destroyed by the explosion which occurred at
about 9:50 am. Officials of the Federal Fire Service, Federal Road
Safety Corps, Police and other security agencies were on ground to
control the situation.
An official of the fire service, Mr Tunde
Adeboye, said that they were able to put out the fire quickly, which
helped in reducing the damage.
A senior police officer at the scene, who pleaded anonymity, said that four persons died in the explosion.
A witness, Mr Segun Adebunmi, said that the explosion was caused by a leaking gas cylinder at the artisan’s shop.
“It’s a testimony that I’m alive as I escaped the scene by the whiskers,’’ he said.
Another witness, Mr Tope Alabi, said that the explosion destroyed cars that were parked on the street.
“I heard a loud bang and the glasses of
cars were shattering and the next thing I saw were human parts littered
all over the place. The security agencies responded promptly and
contained the situation. So, it didn’t escalate,’’ he said.