Total Gridlock in Lagos-Ibadan Expressway as Three People are Burnt to Death in Tanker Explosion (Photo)

Posted by Odinaka on Wed 16th Nov, 2016 - tori.ng

A tanker has exploded in the early hours of Wednesday, affecting trucks and other vehicles along the Lagos-Ibadan expressway at Kara Bridge inward Berger, Lagos State.

A heavy gridlock was reported on the Berger side of the popular Lagos – Ibadan Expressway in the early hours of Wednesday, as at least three persons were burnt to death in a fire accident involving a tanker and three other vehicles on Kara Bridge, with many motorists and commuters stranded as no vehicle could go through the bridge outward Lagos.

According to a report by Punch Metro, three persons were burnt beyond recognition and their remains were deposited in the care of the security agencies, while a burnt corpse was spotted by a reporter floating on the Ogun River under the bridge.

Scene of the incident

Reports revealed that the fire started around 3:00am when a truck carrying goods lost its brake and ran into a tanker, which ignited the fire and engulfed two other trucks and a Toyota Corolla saloon car in flames.

In a statement, the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, said the incident occurred at about 3.08am when the tanker carrying 33,000 litres of diesel ran into a truck carrying brewery products at high speed, and then caught fire, where two container-carrying trucks and one Toyota Corolla saloon car were burnt in the accident.

Road safety workers and other sympathisers inspecting the accident scene.

“The driver was said to have abruptly applied brake at the Kara Bridge outward Lagos resulting in multiple accident and fire outbreak with colossal loss,” the statement partly read.

Speaking to a news correspondent, an eyewitness and owner of the burnt saloon car, disclosed that he was coming from work when he ran into traffic on the bridge, adding that the traffic eased a bit when a truck coming from the rear brushed his vehicle by the side and rammed into a tanker, leading to the fire.

“That was how other vehicles, including mine caught fire, and till now I still don’t know how I escaped because the fire was unlike no other,” he added.

Some vehicle owners stuck in the traffic were also seen to be thoroughly frustrated by the development, while many had switched off their engines.