Five vehicles, three shops and one house in Ojuelegba, Lagos were burnt on Saturday after a tanker containing 33,000 litres of Premium Motor Spirit, also known as petrol, spilled and caught fire.
The General Manager, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, Michael Akindele, told our correspondent in a telephone interview that though no injury or death was recorded, a couple who occupied the house were taken to the hospital for medical check-up.
He said, “At about 2:15 am, we got a distress call through our toll-free number, 767, about a fallen trailer at Ojuelegba en route to Moshalashi.
“The incident occurred in front of the Federal Fire Service, as the truck was ascending the bridge when it fell. There was a spillage. Immediately, we alerted the emergency responders, including our response team, the (state) fire service, the Lagos State Transport Management Authority and the police.”
Akindele added that the spillage travelled through the drainage towards the Shitta area.
According to him, between 4 am and 5 am, LASEMA was informed that some people were cooking and smoking around Shitta, leading to the black smoke fire explosion.
“We were on the ground before the fire outbreak. The petrol spill might have been as a result of reckless driving. The police are conducting investigations into it. The driver of the trailer is in the custody of the police for further investigations.
“No life was lost and nobody was injured, but there was a house that was burnt. Five vehicles, including four cars and one civilian bus, were also burnt.
“The occupants of the affected building, including a husband and his wife, who appeared to be in shock, were taken to Randle Health Centre for a check-up. Already, we have prepared for them a place for immediate assistance at our relief camp in Igando,” the LASEMA boss said.
He noted that an emergency orientation exercise was conducted soon after the incident to prevent a recurrence.
Akindele added, “People need to be careful especially because this is the harmattan season. Drivers need to be avoid reckless driving and obey (traffic) rules. Owners of trucks and trailers need to ensure they put only vehicles that are okay on the road.”
According to the Public Relations Officer, LASEMA, Mr. Kehinde Adebayo, a family of three, including Mr. Abayomi Jinadu, his wife, Rita, and their asthmatic 19-year-old son, Sanmi, who occupied the affected house, was rushed to the hospital for medical attention after the fire outbreak.
No comments:
Post a Comment