Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Enugu State Governor, Dr. Peter Mbah, on Saturday, expressed sadness as a petrol tanker exploded along the Ugwu Onyeama section of the Enugu-Onitsha Expressway in the Coal City, killing 18 persons.
The explosion, which occurred around 11:30 am, caused widespread panic and affected another petrol tanker and six other vehicles.
It was not clear how the incident happened but witnesses told THISDAY that the explosion occurred when a fuel-laden tanker fell while navigating down the hilly busy expressway.
They described the blast as devastating, saying that the ensuing fire also gutted another truck behind it, leading to the escalation of the fire.
Rescue efforts were hindered by the intensity of the fire, making it difficult for bystanders to access the scene.
Victims reportedly burnt beyond recognition, and were believed to be occupants of the vehicles caught in the inferno.
It was gathered that some of the victims were attempting to run away from the scene when they were caught by the fire.
Meanwhile, former Vice President, Atiku, has expressed profound sorrow over the incident.
In a statement posted via his X handle, he extended his condolences to the families and friends of the victims, describing the frequent incidents of tanker explosions as “a national emergency requiring immediate attention.”
“Oh dear, not again! My thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of all the victims of the fuel tanker explosion in Enugu State. May their souls find eternal rest,” he wrote.
The former vice president noted that the recurrent tragedies associated with fuel tanker explosions have reached alarming levels and called on the government to act swiftly.
“The incidents of tragic tanker explosions have reached emergency levels. It is time for the government to establish an inquiry into this issue,” Atiku added.
On his part, Governor Mbah, who was at the scene of the accident for an on-the-spot assessment, expressed sadness over the accident
The governor said the government had already swung into action to ensure that the victims received full medical attention, while also taking steps to forestall future occurrences, including enforcement of road rules and fixing the part of the federal road that was in disrepair.
Describing the accident as unfortunate, Mbah commiserated with the families of the victims.
He further directed the FRSC Sector Commander, Enugu, Mr. Franklin Agbakoba, and the state Commissioner for Transport, Mr. Obi Ozor, to ensure that all tankers conveying inflammable substances in the state have anti-spill lock that will prevent spill in case of accident.
“This is an accident involving a tanker that preliminary investigation show may have had a break failure, fell down, had its product, premium motor spirit spilled from the tank and ignited. So, this is for us a tragedy where we have some casualties.
“But as I said, investigation is still at preliminary stages. The police and other law enforcement agencies are on it. We want to get to the root of this for us to understand the true cause of the accident.
“In the meantime, we have moved those that are in need of treatment to the hospitals for full medical attention. My Commissioner for Health and also my Special Adviser on Health, the Chief Medical Director of the Enugu State University of Science and Technology Teaching Hospital (ESUTTH), Parklane, Enugu, the police, and Federal Road Safety Corps are all involved. They have my instruction to ensure that maximum medical attentions were given to the survivors,” the governor stated.
Continuing, he stated, “But we’re also taking quick measures as a government. I have just been speaking the head of the Federal Road Safety Corps to make sure they enforce the rules that prohibit tanker drivers from the road without an anti-spill lock. Tankers conveying premium spirit and inflammable products must have an anti-spill lock to ensure that when these trucks for down, they do not spill. It is very important.
“Also, for us as a government, we are going to be looking at how we can deploy some traffic rules to ensure that we do not have a recurrence of this.
“We are obviously not going to wait for the federal government to fix the other section of the road. We as government are going to take steps to ensure that whatever needs to be done on that section of the federal road is done immediately so we would never want a reoccurrence of this.”
While briefing the governor on some of the preliminary investigation conducted by the FRSC Sector Commander for Enugu explained that the tanker spill was as a result of a brake failure by the fuel tanker.
He added that 11 people lost their lives at the scene, while identified injured road users were rushed to the hospital for treatment and thanked the governor for showing leadership by rushing to the scene and equally undertaking to foot the medical bills.