The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has confirmed six deaths following a tanker explosion along the AYA-Karu expressway in Abuja. The number of injured persons remains unknown.
In a statement on Thursday, March 20, NEMA said the victims had been taken to the National Hospital, State House Clinic, Karu General Hospital, and Customs Clinic Karu for treatment.
The agency disclosed on its X handle that it received a distress call about the accident, which occurred at around 7 p.m. on Wednesday.
“The crash involved a Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) truck that lost control and collided with another truck, triggering a fire that engulfed multiple vehicles.
“The crash resulted in the fire that subsequently impacted several other vehicles with significant damages. The FRSC, as the lead agency, was already on the scene due to the proximity of their Zebra base,” NEMA stated.
The agency said its Search and Rescue Team, along with emergency response vehicles, including a Medical Intensive Care Unit (MICU) ambulance, were mobilised.
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The operation was coordinated by the Director of Search and Rescue, with backup teams deployed for reinforcement.
According to the statement, “Multiple agencies, including FRSC, Federal Fire Service, NSCDC, NPF, the military, FCT Emergency Management Agency, and FCT Fire Service, collaborated to extinguish fires, extricate trapped individuals, and evacuate the injured to hospitals.”
A total of 16 cars and two trucks were involved in the crash.
NEMA noted that the biggest challenge during the operation was traffic and crowd control, which delayed access to the scene, especially for the MICU ambulance.
“After the successful evacuation of affected persons and the clearance of the road for normal traffic flow, the DSAR officially handed over the scene to the Police at 23:48 hrs.
“On behalf of DG NEMA, (Mrs Zubaida Umar) appreciation was extended to all stakeholders involved in the response,” it added.