Many people at the wee hours of Thursday sustained varying injuries while articulated vehicles were burnt after a Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) laden tanker exploded at Mile-Two Oke, along Oshodi-Apapa in Lagos.
The explosion occurred around 1am when the tanker said to have loaded products from a nearby tank farm, upturned while trying it navigate a bad portion of the highway.
As soon as it fell, witnesses said went up in flames with the fire following the trail of spilled PMS even to the other parts of the highway.
Although witnesses claimed no fewer than 10 vehicles were gutted by fire including a truck belonging to LACASERA with beverages loaded in it, the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) said three vehicles were affected.
It was gathered that most of the truck drivers were sleeping inside their vehicles when they heard a loud bang that brought them to reality, leading to a stampede.
While some of the drivers were able to speedily take their vehicles off the express, some others awaiting to be called into the ports were not that fortunate as the fire which spread to the other lanes also affected them.
It was learnt that trucks that were mostly affected were those behind the exploded tanker as well as the LACASERA vehicle and a truck that attempted to enter the beverage company’s premises for safety.
Giving an eyewitness account, a truck driver, Musa said: “My truck was the fourth on the queue. I was waiting for those in front to pass the failed section when I saw one of them fell. When the fire started, it caught the truck that was beside the affected one.
