Despite a deadly tanker explosion that killed over 90 people days earlier, residents in Bida town, Niger State, gathered around another fallen truck on Monday.
Video footage showed young people collecting liquid from the broken-down vehicle, while others ran away to avoid potential danger. Local resident Yinusa Jiya said, “The people were not even afraid despite the earlier assumption that it was petrol.”
Another witness, Fatimah Mohammed, explained the truck carried groundnut oil: “It fell around AYM Shafa filling station yesterday (Monday) and residents stole huge amounts of the groundnut oil dripping from the tanker.”
Read Also: Tinubu pained by tanker explosion, orders free treatment for victims
This incident followed Sunday’s devastating explosion near Dikko Junction, where the death toll has reached 98 as more injured victims died in hospital. The Niger State Emergency Management Agency buried 86 bodies in a mass grave, while many survivors continue receiving treatment for severe burns.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu ordered the National Orientation Agency to increase awareness campaigns against fuel scooping, as authorities blame the casualties on people trying to collect fuel from the crashed tanker.
The Nigerian Governors’ Forum expressed concern about the high number of deaths and serious injuries. Niger State has experienced similar tragedies before, including a tanker explosion that killed more than 50 travellers on the Agaie-Badeggi road in September 2024.
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