No fewer than nine people have sustained various injuries and many vehicles burnt after a gas explosion triggered a fire at the Mobil Filling Station near the Airport Hotel in Ikeja, Lagos State.
Our correspondent learnt that no casualties were reported at the filling station when the explosion occurred around 10:49 a.m. on Thursday, causing panic and fear among residents and business owners.
Speaking to our correspondent, an attendant who did not want his name in print for personal reasons, said the fire that emanated from the point spread immediately, affecting about nine vehicles parked at the premises.
He said, “I was attending to a customer when I heard a loud noise from the gas point and before I could imagine what was going on, the vehicles parked close to the gas truck were already gutted by fire.
My colleagues and I, as well as customers who came to buy fuel quickly ran away. A gas truck was refilling the storage tank when it happened.”
An eyewitness who gave his name simply as Tunde said the extent of the damage was due to the fast spread of the fire.
He said, “The fire was so fast that no one could wait to move out of their vehicles from the station. Before the firefighters arrived, we tried our best to see how to reduce its spread but it was too much. It would have been fatal if the place was crowded due to fuel scarcity.”
A fruit seller named Adamu, who was in the area when the explosion occurred, told our correspondent that the fire started while a gas tanker was discharging its content into an above-ground storage tank, which then ignited.
“The fire started when the tanker was inside the station. The explosion was heavy. I saw yellow buses carrying at least three people to the hospital,” he stated.
Adamu’s account was confirmed by the Permanent Secretary of the Lagos State Emergency Maintenance Agency, Damilola Oke-Osanyintolu, on Thursday. He stated that their investigation revealed damage to the pipe of the eight-ton LPG gas cylinder while its content was being discharged.
He explained that the damage to the cylinder led to a rapid gas leak, which then ignited and caused the explosion. He added that further investigation would provide answers regarding the cause of the incident
A fruit seller named Adamu, who was in the area when the explosion occurred, told our correspondent that the fire started while a gas tanker was discharging its content into an above-ground storage tank, which then ignited.
“The fire started when the tanker was inside the station. The explosion was heavy. I saw yellow buses carrying at least three people to the hospital,” he stated.
Adamu’s account was confirmed by the Permanent Secretary of the Lagos State Emergency Maintenance Agency, Damilola Oke-Osanyintolu, on Thursday. He stated that their investigation revealed damage to the pipe of the eight-ton LPG gas cylinder while its content was being discharged.
He explained that the damage to the cylinder led to a rapid gas leak, which then ignited and caused the explosion. He added that further investigation would provide answers regarding the cause of the incident
