Five dead as fire rages on Lagos-Ibadan Expressway

10 vehicles burnt as tanker spills 30,000 litres of petrol. MOTORISTS had another nasty experience yesterday on the ever-busy Lagos-Ibadan expressway.Many were trapped in a terrible traffic jam, which followed an all-night fire sparked by a tanker that spilled its 33,000 litres of petrol on the road.

Five persons were feared dead. Ten vehicles, including three tankers, were burnt in the fire, which was still smouldering in the afternoon.

The incident occured at Danko village near Ogere-Remo.

The inferno halted traffic on the nation’s foremost highway for more than 10 hours.

Many people travelling to Ibadan from Lagos aborted their trip.

Those who died were burnt, according to eyewitnesses. But the police said only one person died.

Spokesman Muyiwa Adejobi said: “The accident occurred at about 1 am on Thursday. A driver of a tanker fully loaded with Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) was trying to maneouvre his way through two vehicles on the expressway. His tanker fell and the product spilled on the road.

“In the course of this spill, a fire broke out and the entire area was engulfed by fire.

“A casualty was reported. A male whose identity is yet to be ascertained but investigation is on-going.”

But a man who claimed to have witnessed it said the incident was preventable if the road was in a good shape.

“It is always disheartening to witness how fellow human beings are burnt to death. I have heard the news of accidents on this road but I am still in shock over what I witnessed today,” he said.

According to him, seven trailers and many cars were burnt.

“The tanker driver could not say that he was not aware that the road was bad. He was on high speed when suddenly he ran into a pot hole and this led to the accident. The tanker fell after manouvering its way in between two cars.

“We counted five bodies but I am sure that the casualty figure would be more than that.”

Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC) Sector Commander in Ogun State, Ayobami Omiyale, said five persons were critically injured.

He said the fire was put out by Fire Service men. The injured were taken to hospitals.

Reacting to the incident yesterday, the concessionaire of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Bi-Courtney Highway Services Limited, noted that it had always warned of the hazards of parking of trailers on the roadside.

In a statement by its spokesman, Dipo Kehinde, Bi-Courtney said: “The concessionaire has created eight temporary trailer parks along the expressway to take heavy trucks off the road shoulders, but drivers still park carelessly along the road.

“You will recollect that the concessionaire has offered to build permanent trailer parks on the road, which could have solved the problem, but the move did not receive the support of the Ogun State government through the acquisition of land.”

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