By Muhammad Mamman
A petrol tanker fire has claimed an unconfirmed number of lives after a crash along the Abeokuta–Sagamu Expressway in the early hours of Friday.
According to Babatunde Akinbiyi, spokesperson for the Ogun State Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Agency (TRACE), the accident occurred around 1 a.m. when a 33,000-litre tanker overturned due to excessive speeding, spilling fuel across the highway.
“The inferno, caused by the tanker losing control and toppling, spread to a truck and a tow vehicle, and also destroyed a PHCN cable supplying electricity to Mowe and nearby areas,” Akinbiyi told reporters.
Emergency responders, including TRACE, the Ogun State Fire Service, FRSC, Police, Amotekun, and the NSCDC, were deployed to contain the blaze, manage traffic diversions, and begin recovery efforts.
He added that while casualty figures are yet to be confirmed, rescue operations and decanting of the tanker’s contents were ongoing.
