Tanker explosion: Pregnant Woman, Over 19 Others Feared Dead

A pregnant woman and over 19 people, including children and elderly people, have been reported burnt to death following a tanker explosion.

The tanker was said to be conveying petroleum products along the ever-busy Warri-Benin highway on Sunday but accidentally fell at Koko junction in Warri North Government Area of Delta State.

Sources said some nearby villages rushed to the scene to scoop fuel that spilt from the tanker.

They were said to have defied pleadings and warnings from the driver of the tanker and security agents, over the danger their action could cause.

According to an eyewitness who identified himself simply as Yusuf, while the scavengers were scooping fuel, there was an explosion suspected to have been caused by a spark from a faulty vehicle.

Yusuf said: “We tried to prevent them but the youths threatened to beat us up telling us it’s their community. They came in their numbers carrying all sorts of containers and when the explosion happened around 12:15 am this morning we all fled.

“You can see dead bodies on the ground, some of them ran into the forest as I speak some dead bodies have been removed, I counted over 20 bodies.”