More than 140 victims in northern Nigeria after tanker explosion in Jigawa state. The explosion took place Tuesday evening, October 15. The victims are residents who came to collect the fuel spilled from the overturned vehicle, Nigeria where gasoline prices have soared since the end of fuel subsidies more than a year ago, which has caused the cost to soar. transport and food, worsening the precariousness in which many Nigerians live
The truck had just swerved to avoid collision with another in the town of Majiya, about a hundred kilometers northeast of Kano.
The truck overturned and the fuel flowed onto the road and the shoulder.
The police spokesperson says officers tried to push back the crowd gathering around the vehicle. But the explosion killed at least 140 people, buried this Wednesday, October 16.
According to the Nigerian relief agency, NEMA, the toll could be even higher. There are many injured.
Vice President Kashim Shettima calls for “a comprehensive review of fuel transportation safety protocols.”
For opponent Atiku Abubakar, candidate in the last presidential election, “it is time to explore other means, such as rail, to transport petroleum products across the country. No resources should be spared to treat the injured. »
In September, a collision between a tanker truck and another carrying passengers and livestock left around sixty people dead in western Nigeria.
The Federal Road Safety Commission recorded more than 1,500 accidents involving tanker trucks four years ago, in 2020, causing a total of 535 victims.
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