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Petrol tanker explosion kills 55 in Nigeria

Tanker explosion

A petrol tanker burns at the scene of the explosion  in Niger State, Nigeria.

Photo credit: Pool

What you need to know:

  • This is the latest incident involving risky transportation of petrol products in the West African country.
  • Authorities said the spilled petrol came into contact with an electricity generator triggering the explosion.



A tanker explosion in Nigeria’s Niger state has killed 55 people who were jostling to scoop fuel.

This is the latest incident involving risky transportation of petrol products in the West African country.

The incident occurred as residents rushed to fetch petrol spilled by the tanker that had derailed along Dikko-Maje road in Suleja, Niger state, north central Nigeria.

Officials of federal and state emergency rescue agencies said rescue operations were going on by Saturday evening with hundreds of injured people rushed to hospital.

Mr Kumar Tsukwam, Federal Road Safety Commander (FRSC) in Niger, confirmed that a loaded petrol tanker derailed at the scene and people started scooping the spilled fuel which later exploded into a ball of fire.

Tsukwam said those who went to scoop fuel were engulfed by the flames. More people who rushed to the scene to offer early rescue were also hurt, he said.

He said 55 people had died from burns but dozens of others had been rushed to hospital. 

Tanker explosion

Rescue teams at the scene of the Petrol tanker explosion  in Niger State, Nigeria.

Photo credit: Pool

Mr Abdullahi Baba-Arah, Director General of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA), said the explosion occurred at about 9 am.

The spilled petrol, he explained, came into contact with an electricity generator triggering an explosion that claimed over 55 lives and added that many other persons were injured, while properties worth millions of Naira were destroyed.

Mr Bologi Ibrahim, the Chief Press Secretary to the State Governor, Mohammed Bago, who was on the governor’s entourage to Suleja and Tafa Local Government Areas to inspect the government’s projects, confirmed the incident. 

This is the latest tragedy in Nigeria involving a petrol tanker. In spite of being the biggest producer of oil, Nigeria hasn’t been able to refine own oil and relies on importations.

In October, state-owned Port Harcourt Refinery began work and so was the privately owned Dangote Group refinery. Both have been insufficient to meet the demands of the most population African country.

Nigeria transports most of the imported petrol by road, a result of lack of alternative means.   

Many are struggling to get access to petrol whose prices have has spiked more than fivefold since President Bola Ahmed Tinubu took office in May 2023 and removed subsidy from the product.

In October, a petrol tanker explosion killed 153 people, mostly those who rushed to scoop fuel from a derailed truck in northern Nigeria.  

The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) reported that in 2020 alone, there were 1,531 petrol tanker crashes resulting in 535 deaths and injuries to 1,142 people.

The FRSC said more than 5,000 people died in road accidents in Nigeria in 2023, compared to nearly 6,500 the previous year.