Concerns of mass casualties ensued after a tanker, laden with petrol, exploded in the vicinity of Sari Iganmu, located within Lagos State.
Africa Today News, New York, learned that the incident happened on Thursday evening.
While the cause of the explosion remains a mystery, first responders swiftly arrived at the scene to contain the fire. Online videos circulating show the fire’s intensity, accompanied by the sorrowful sounds of the distressed crowd.
Personnel from the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Services were on-site, actively engaged in extinguishing the fire.
The spokesperson for the agency, Shakiru Amodu, in a terse statement sent to our correspondent, said, ‘Tanker fire is being combatted at the Lagos Quadrapoint Bridge, by National Arts Theater, Iganmu as Sari Iganmu and Ilupeju Fire Crews combine efforts to tame the raging fire.’
Read also: Isreali War: Death Toll Hit 2,700 As US, UK Evacuate Citizens
The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority in a post on X said, ‘A tanker has gone up in flames just before Iganmu bridge from Sifax. LASTMA has already alerted the @LagosRescue. Our officers at the scene are doing their best to handle the situation. Motorists moving towards the location are advised to avoid the location and reroute their journey for safety,’ the agency said via @followlastma.
In response to inquiries regarding the incident, Adebayo Taofiq, the agency’s spokesperson, committed to providing further information to journalists.
A bystander who spoke on condition of anonymity said, ‘The container was coming from Apapa. The container climbed the bridge leading to Orile, it could not climb the bridge and fell off at the tail end of the bridge. It then collided with a fuel tanker, which burst into flames.’
The eyewitness further noted that about 10 vehicles were trapped with their occupants. ‘Fire service men from Iganmu station came to the scene,’ he added.