Lagos-Ibadan Expressway was rocked by an explosion early hours of Tuesday, leaving two persons dead and 13 vehicles, including trucks, burnt when a petroleum tanker fell on the road and exploded at the proposed new Kara Market, Ogere-Remo, Ogun State.
NewsSpecng gathered that the fire incident happened around 6.20 am on Tuesday at the Romona trailer park in the Ogere area of Ogun State.
The Ogun State Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps, Ahmed Umar, who confirmed the incident to our correspondent, said the state Fire Service was attending to the fire at the moment.
He said, “The command got a report about a burning tanker around Romona trailer park Ogere. The fire is serious and as such, the number of vehicles involved cannot be ascertained yet.
“The Ogun State Fire Service was contacted and FRSC operatives are on the ground managing the traffic situation. The firefighters have arrived at the scene.”
Ogun state Deputy Governor Engineer Noimot Salako-Oyedele who led a government delegation to the scene, expressed sadness over the significant loss of property at the site, and conveyed the government’s sympathy to the affected people.
She said that following briefing by the relevant agencies that responded to the emergency, there have been two casualties from the inferno, which also caused serious gridlock on the road.
According to her, 13 vehicles were involved in the accident which occurred when a fuel laden tanker collided with another vehicle and burst into flames.
She thanked the operatives of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Police, Fire Service and Ogun State Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Corps (TRACE) for responding swiftly to the emergency, thereby helping to limit the tragic loss of lives.
The Public Relations Officer of the (TRACE) Babatunde Akinbiyi, said a trailer bearing petroleum product fell on the road after colliding with another truck, explaining that the explosion affected seven other trucks and six other vehicles in the process.
Akinbiyi advised motorists to ply the alternative routes mapped out to ease travelling along the expressway.
“Vehicles moving inbound Lagos should go through Saapade-Ode-Remo-Iperu-Sagamu to relink Lagos-Ibadan Expressway. In addition, vehicles moving inbound Ibadan should also go through Sagamu-Iperu-Ode/Remo-Saapade to relink Lagos-Ibadan expressway.
“While any inconvenience is highly regretted, drivers are implored to please maintain lane discipline, so as not to worsen the traffic situation,” TRACE PRO stated.
