39 dead, 60 injured in Niger state tanker explosion

The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) says at least 39 persons died, with more than 60 injured, after a petrol tanker exploded in Niger state.

On Tuesday, the articulated vehicle exploded in the Essa community, along the Agaie–Bida road, Katcha LGA of the state.

The explosion occurred after the tanker tumbled, with residents reportedly scooping petrol at the scene.

In a statement, NEMA said “upon receiving the distress report, the Director General of NEMA, Mrs. Zubaida Umar, immediately directed the Head of NEMA Minna Operations Office, Mr. Hussaini Isah, to activate the rescue team and deploy to the scene to support the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) and other responders in rescue operations”.

“The explosion, which happened around 3:45 p.m. along the Bida–Badegi–Agaie road, claimed 39 lives and left over 60 persons with severe burns, including men, women, and children,” the agency said.

While commiserating with the victims and families affected, Umar advised “members of the public to desist from scooping fuel from accident tankers, stressing that such acts have repeatedly led to avoidable loss of lives”.

She also advised residents and motorists to steer clear of accident scenes and promptly report such incidents to emergency agencies for professional handling.

Umar Bago, governor of Niger, said it is “disheartening” that residents “continued to approach a fallen tanker to scoop its contents despite several sensitisations on the danger of such action”.

This is not the first time locals would be killed while scooping from a fuel-laden tanker.

In October 2024, over 100 people were confirmed dead after a petrol-laden tanker exploded at the Kano-Hadejia expressway in Jigawa state.

Most of the victims were trying to scoop petrol from the tanker after it tipped over.