The death toll from the petrol tanker explosion at Dikko Junction near Suleja in Niger State has increased to 86, with 55 people injured and currently receiving treatment in the hospital. When the incident occurred on Saturday, the death toll was initially reported at 70, with 50 others injured.
However, additional bodies have since been recovered and given a mass burial in Dikko. The explosion was caused by a speeding fuel tanker that crashed at Dikko Junction, located between Niger and Kaduna states.
The tanker, in the process of scooping fuel which spilled on the tarred road, exploded with a heavy flame which killed all the residents trying to scoop fuel as well as others who attempted to rescue them.
The Director General of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency, Abdullahi Baba-Arah, in a statement on Sunday, said the agency, as well as the Gurara Local Government Area authorities and kind-hearted volunteers, conducted the mass burial between 5 pm and 12 am.
“A total number of 86 persons have been confirmed dead, with their corpses recovered and buried.
“80 of them are in mass graves at Dikko PHC premises, while five were carried away for burial in the town by relatives and one died in Dikko PHC.
“The mass burial was carried out by NSEMA in collaboration with Gurara LGA and very brave, kind-hearted volunteers between the hours of 5 pm and 12 am.
“The number of injured now stands at 55 with one dead in Dikko PHC,” Baba-Arah stated.
Niger State Governor, Mohammed Bago, who visited the scene of the explosion, banned vehicles coming from the Maje axis from passing through the Dikko bridge.
In a statement on Sunday, issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Bologi Ibrahim, the governor directed the Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps to establish a detachment in the area to ensure the enforcement of the directive.
Reacting to the incident, President Bola Tinubu expressed deep sorrow in a statement signed by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
The President mourned the victims and expressed his condolences to the families affected, as well as to the government and people of Niger State.
Tinubu also directed the relevant agencies to provide comprehensive medical care to the injured and instructed security and road safety authorities to implement measures to avert similar incidents.
The President mandated the National Orientation Agency to initiate a nationwide educational campaign to raise public awareness about the severe risks and environmental dangers of scooping fuel from fallen tankers.
