No fewer than 30 people have lost their lives, while about 40 others sustained injuries in a tragic tanker explosion that occurred on Tuesday in Essan and Badeggi communities along the Bida–Agaie road, in Katcha Local Government Area, Niger State.
Eyewitnesses said the incident happened around 11:00 a.m. when residents rushed to scoop fuel from a fallen tanker, which suddenly exploded, triggering a massive fire that consumed dozens of people.
Many victims were reportedly burnt beyond recognition, while survivors were rushed to nearby hospitals for urgent medical attention.
Confirming the incident, the Chairman of the Niger State Tanker Drivers Association and National Ex-Officio of NUPENG, Comrade Farouk Kawo, described the explosion as “devastating and avoidable.”
According to Kawo, the ill-fated tanker was transporting petroleum products from Lagos to the northern region when it crashed.
“We have recorded more than 30 tanker accidents along the Bida–Agaie route in October alone. The deplorable state of the road is largely to blame,” he said.
Kawo decried the recurring practice of fuel scooping by residents at crash scenes, despite repeated warnings.
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“Just last Sunday, a tanker carrying groundnut oil crashed in the same area and residents rushed to scoop the product,” he added.
Efforts to reach the Director-General of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency Abdullahi Baba-Arah, were unsuccessful, as calls to his phone went unanswered.
Meanwhile, Kawo appealed to Governor Umaru Bago to rehabilitate the affected stretch of the road, stressing that urgent intervention was needed to prevent further tragedies.
“We cannot continue to lose lives and property to preventable accidents. The government must act fast,” he urged.
The incident has once again drawn attention to the dangerous trend of fuel scooping, poor road infrastructure, and weak enforcement of road safety regulations in parts of northern Nigeria.
