A gas tanker explosion has killed more than 100 people in Nigeria. The incident occurred in the Nigerian town of Nnewi. Nnewi is located in the province of Anambra. The population of Nnewi is largely Christian, and most of the people that died were people that wanted to get their cooking gas cylinders re-filled ahead of Christmas, according to Al Jazeera. However, Peter Nwosu, a plant manager at the facility told Al Jazeera that he could not confirm the death toll and denied that as many as 100 people had died.
The exact circumstances of the accident are not entirely clear. It appears that a tanker transporting cooking gas had just come in to the gas facility run by the Chicason Group. At this facility, the truck unloaded the gas that it was carrying. The truck was supposed to remain at the facility until the temperature had cooled off. However, it appears that the truck starting leaving the facility without waiting for the minimum quantum of time that was necessary for the truck to cool off. Instead, it appears that as soon the truck started to move again, it exploded in a ball of fire. According to one witness, Emeka Peters, the fire began at roughly 11 a.m. local time.
"The fire exploded like a bomb, and the whole gas station went up in thick, black smoke amidst an explosion from cooking gas cylinders. Many people were killed, and most of them were those that had been in the station queuing up all day to get their cylinders filled," Peters is quoted as telling Associated Press (AP).
Peters also said that the fire had burned for several hours. A large number of the corpses and the critically injured were removed to the Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital in Nnewi. Several of the corpses were charred beyond recognition.
Nigeria has had a history of suffering such accidents. Earlier in June of this year, a fuel tanker crashed into a bus station and exploded. More than 60 people were killed in that incident, according to the British Broadcasting Corporation (B.B.C.).
