Incident Report Subject: Nigeria - Hell on the Expressway Date of Email report: Thu 12/05/2011 Report Detail:
Three articulated tankers laden with petroleum products and another truck were completely burnt in the accident that created serious panic for early users of the ever-busy expressway. The raging inferno started around 6 30 a.m., on Wednesday morning and defied concerted effort of fire servicemen as thick smoke from the fire enveloped the entire Ibafo community. The Nigerian Tribune reliably gathered that the whole incident started on Tuesday evening,when two tanker trucks, one laden with kerosene and the other with petrol crashed around the Mountain of Fire and Miracle Camp gate in Ibafo. The two trucks were reportedly heading towards Ibadan from Lagos, when they crashed into each other and blocked the expressway. The truck drivers were said to have engaged each other in hot argument on who was responsible for the accident and reportedly did not bother to completely remove their vehicles from the road. The Wednesday fire incident occurred, when another articulated tanker, laden with diesel crashed into the two tankers, resulting in inferno that instantly engulfed the three tankers and another truck, parked by the road side. An eyewitness informed the Nigerian Tribune that the driver of the diesel truck and two yet- to-be identified drivers, were burnt to death in the fire incident. The eyewitness stated that the driver of the diesel truck was on high speed and apparently did not see the two trucks involved in the accident, parked by the side of the road, resulting in the crash. The fire incident created serious cause for worry for motorists, who were driving on the other side of the road, as one side of the road was blocked, creating serious traffic gridlock. Hundreds of tanker drivers stormed the scene of the accident to identify the drivers of the burnt vehicles, while residents of Ibafo and other neighbouring communities watched as fire fighters battled with the raging fire. All the vehicles were burnt beyond recognition despite the frantic effort by men of the Fire Service, the Nigeria Police, Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) and the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), to curtail the inferno. Thousands of motorists were stranded for more than six hours, as the rescue team worked to clear the wreckage. Their effort were partly hampered by the impatience of mostly commercial vehicle operators coming from Lagos who resorted to driving against the traffic, blocking oncoming vehicles from Ibadan.The gridlock covered both sides of the expressway, with many workers heading for Lagos to resume duty left at the mercy of commercial motorcyclists, who charged N1000 for a ride to the nearest community, Mowe. Additional Documentation: |
