More than 100 killed, scores injured in Nigeria fuel tanker explosion

People carry the body of a victim of a tanker explosion for burial in Majiya town, Nigeria, on October 16, 2024.

More than 140 people were killed and dozens were injured in Nigeria after an overturned gasoline tanker truck exploded in flames while bystanders were trying to scoop up fuel pouring from the vehicle, emergency services said Wednesday.

An explosion has killed more than 140 people in northern Nigeria as crowds rushed to collect fuel spilling from a crashed tanker, officials told AFP on Wednesday.

It's the latest such accident at a time when petrol has become a precious commodity during Nigeria's worst economic crisis in a generation.

The fuel tanker had veered to avoid another vehicle and crashed in the town of Majiya in Jigawa state on Tuesday, police said.

Following the crash, residents crowded round the tanker, gathering fuel that spilt onto the road and in drains, police spokesman Lawan Shiisu Adam said.

Nura Abdullahi, a spokesman for the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), said "more than 140 people" had been buried in a mass grave and warned the toll was likely to rise further.

Earlier, police said at least 94 people were killed and 50 injured.

Shiisu Adam said the residents had "overwhelmed" officers trying to stop them.

The Nigerian Medical Association has urged doctors to rush to nearby emergency rooms to help with the influx of patients.

Nigerian lawmakers have observed a minute's silence in the Senate.

Desperation rose further last week after the state oil company hiked prices for the second time in just over a month.

Dangerous roads

(AFP)


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