Tanker fire fills 48 passengers, 50 cows in popular northern state, details emerge

• Forty-eight victims of the petrol tanker explosion in Niger State were buried in a mass ceremony in Agaie Local Government Area
• Abdullahi Baba-Arab, Director-General of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA), confirmed that all 48 victims were burnt beyond recognition
• Alongside the human casualties, over 50 cattle were also killed in the blaze, which occurred around 12:30 am along the Lapai-Agaie road

Minna, Niger state - Forty-eight victims of Sunday’s petrol tanker explosion were laid to rest in a mass burial in Agaie Local Government Area, Niger State.

The tragic incident occurred early Sunday morning when a petrol tanker collided head-on with a truck carrying passengers and cattle from Wudil, Kano State.

Tanker explosion in Niger state kills many Photo credit: @EMEKABRUNO1
Source: Twitter

The Director-General of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency, Abdullahi Baba-Arab, provided an update, confirming that all 48 victims were burnt beyond recognition, leading to the decision for a mass burial in the area, as reported by The Punch.

NSEMA gives more details on tragic incident

He further reported that 18 additional bodies were recovered during search and rescue operations, bringing the total to 48, up from the initially reported 30.

In a statement, Baba-Arab explained the accident took place around 12:30 am along the Lapai-Agaie road, about 2km from Dendo community in Agaie LGA, Vanguard reported.

He said:

“Following further search and rescue operation, my agency discovered 18 more bodies which were also burnt to death and all the dead have been given a mass burial."

He also noted that over 50 cattle were killed in the fire, while a crane truck and a pickup van were also consumed in the blaze.

The statement reads:

“Over 30 people are already confirmed dead, with over 50 cattle burnt. NSEMA’s Rapid Respond Team, in conjunction with the LGEMCs, is still on the scene of the incident conducting a search and rescue operation as more corpses are still trapped inside the trucks.”

16 people burnt to death in Ondo accident

In another tragic incident, Legit.ng reported that 16 people have been burnt to death in a road accident that occurred in Ajue community, along Ore-Ondo highway, Ondo state.

Three other persons were seriously injured while two others reportedly escaped unhurt.

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Source: Legit.ng