A fuel tanker explosion in Niger State in northern Nigeria has killed 86 people and injured dozens, the country’s national emergency agency said.
The blast happened in the early hours of Saturday near the Suleja area after individuals attempted to transfer gasoline from one tanker into another truck using a generator.
“The final death toll from the tanker explosion is 86,” said Ibrahim Audu Husseini, spokesman for the National Emergency Management Agency in Niger state.
“We buried 86 burnt corpses between 12:00 pm yesterday to 2:00 am of today,” he said, updating an earlier toll of 70. “It took us 14 hours to bury the bodies because we couldn’t get excavators and had to get locals to dig the mass grave manually.”
He said 52 other people suffered “severe burns from the explosion”.
The National Emergency Management Authority had earlier said in a statement that 15 shops had been destroyed in the explosion.
Kumar Tsukwam, a sector commander for Niger State with the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), said that people rushed to scoop up the spilled petrol after the truck overturned. “The tanker burst into flames, engulfing another tanker,” he said in a statement.
“Most of the victims were burnt beyond recognition,” Tsukwam said. “We are at the scene to clear things up,” he said, adding that firefighters had managed to put out the fire.
Mohammed Bago, the Niger governor, confirmed the incident in a statement and said that many people are believed to have perished in a huge fire caused by the tanker explosion.
He described the incident as “worrisome, heartbreaking, and unfortunate”.
Tanker accidents common
Such accidents have become common in Africa’s largest oil producer, killing dozens of people in the country grappling with its worst cost of living crisis in a generation.
The price of petrol in Nigeria has soared more than 400 percent since President Bola Tinubu scrapped a decades-old subsidy when he came into office in May 2023. This has led many to risk their lives to recover fuel during tanker truck accidents.
In October 2024, more than 150 people were killed after a nearly identical incident took place in the Jigawa State also located in northern Nigeria.
About 100 other people were also injured in that incident, with a growing crowd approaching an overturned tanker to pick up fuel that they could then sell in the black market. Many of the victims were buried together in a large funeral organised by the authorities.
In September of the same year, another 59 people were killed in Niger State after a fuel tanker collided with a truck carrying passengers and cattle.
After the October incident, Nigerian President Tinubu reaffirmed the government’s commitment to reviewing and enhancing fuel transportation safety protocols. He also said police would strengthen measures to prevent further accidents, including increased patrols, stricter enforcement of safety regulations, and other highway safety mechanisms.
Authorities have also been engaged in an effort to fight the theft of oil, having improved their security measures including adding gunboats on important waterways.
