A tragic incident unfolded in central Nigeria on Saturday when a fuel tanker overturned and exploded, resulting in the deaths of 70 people. The victims had gathered around the tanker in an attempt to siphon fuel, which has seen a sharp price increase due to the country’s ongoing economic crisis.
“The death toll stands at 70 so far,” Kumar Tsukwam, the head of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in Niger State, said.
A truck carrying 60,000 litres of gasoline was involved in an accident around 10:00 AM (0900 GMT) at the Dikko junction, located on the route connecting the federal capital, Abuja, to the northern city of Kaduna, according to Tsukwam.
“Most of the victims were burnt beyond recognition,” Tsukwam said. “We are at the scene to clear things up.”
An FSRC statement said: a “large crowd of people gathered to scoop the fuel” when “suddenly the tanker burst into flames, engulfing another tanker.”
“So far 60 corpses recovered from scene, the victims are mostly scavengers,” it said.
Following the fuel subsidy removal by President Bola Tinubu shortly after his election last year, fuel prices have skyrocketed, causing the cost of essentials to surge and sparking widespread protests.
The price of gasoline has surged fivefold over the past 18 months, prompting many to take dangerous risks by attempting to recover fuel from tanker accidents, a frequent occurrence in Africa’s most populous nation.
Niger State Governor Umaru Bago expressed his distress over the tragedy, calling the explosion “worrisome, heartbreaking and unfortunate.” He also confirmed that several individuals sustained varying degrees of burns in the incident.
This explosion follows a similar incident in October, when over 170 lives were lost in Jigawa State, northern Nigeria. In 2020, the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) reported 1,531 fuel tanker accidents that resulted in more than 535 deaths.
