The death toll from the early Sunday morning fuel tanker explosion in Niger State has risen to 59 as search and rescue operation by Niger State Emergency Management Agency, NSEMA and other agencies continues on day 2 of the incident.
The incident which occurred at about 12:30 am on Sunday involved 4 vehicles: a tanker, a truck coming from Wudil in Kano State, a forklift truck and a pickup van conveying goods to Agaie market.
A statement by NSEMA spokesman, Hussaini Ibrahim, said a total of 59 bodies burnt beyond recognition have so far been recovered and given mass burial at the scene of the incident.
According to the statement, one of the injured with first degree burns died at Federal Medical Center Bida, two locals were taken to a village nearby for burial, and the rest were discoveries during evacuation.
The statement went on to say that more dead bodies could be found in the continued evacuation.
Over 50 cattle were burnt in the explosion.
It would be recalled that a similar tanker explosion occurred in August 2020, killing 8 people and injuring 7 others.
(Editor: Okechukwu Eze)
