The Rivers state Police command says four people and over 70 vehicles were burnt in Friday’s fuel tanker explosion in the state.

The explosion occurred along Eleme section of the East-West Road in the state at about 7:30 p.m.

SP Grace Iringe-Koko, spokesman of command, who confirmed the sad incident in Port Harcourt on Saturday, said that the tragedy occurred following a collision between a heavy-duty truck and a petrol-laden tanker.

At the scene of the accident, there were seveal burnt vehicles and charred bodies of victims on the road.

The incident happened a few metres from the Indorama Petrochemical Company and roughly 10 kilometres from the Port Harcourt Refinery.

There was an extensive gridlock stretching over five kilometres on the road under reconstruction as part of the N200 billion Ring Road project by the Rivers Government.

State government trucks, accompanied by police and Federal Road Safety Commission officials, were seen evacuating the burnt vehicles to facilitate traffic flow.

An eyewitness, Onyeka Ubani, who narrowly escaped the explosion, said that while transporting passengers on his newly acquired tricycle (Keke), they heard a deafening sound ahead of them.

“The loud sound was followed by a massive fireball, causing everyone to flee for safety.

“We managed to escape, but unfortunately, my Keke caught fire in the process.

“I thank God for my life, but I am at a loss about what to do with my life now, having recently purchased this Keke,” a distraught Ubani said.

Another eyewitness, David Jumbo, said that he was returning home from work around the Akpajo axis of the East-West Road when the incident occurred.

He narrated that after the explosion, vehicles and victims were caught by fire, which stretched over 200 metres.

“It happened so quickly that it could be likened to scenes from Hollywood movies.

“While I was fleeing for safety, I saw a pregnant woman struggling to exit one of the commercial vehicles.

“Unfortunately, when I returned this morning, I found the deceased pregnant woman trapped in the bus as she tried to escape,” he recounted.

Jumbo attributed the accident to the recklessness of truck drivers, who disregarded road warnings despite the ongoing road construction.

Gov. Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers, who visited the accident scene, described it as tragic and sad.

He urged motorists to always exercise caution while on the road.

“This incident is not a pleasant one, we recorded a huge number of vehicles destroyed and lives lost.

“I have already asked the relevant agencies to brief us on how we can support the bereaved families to mitigate their losses.

“This incident would have been avoided if the motorists had adhered to proper conduct. People should ply this road with caution,” Fubara said.

The governor directed security agencies to conduct a thorough assessment of the accident to facilitate the provision of aid to families of victims.

“Yesterday around 7-8pm, we got information about a very serious inferno that was caused by a tanker conveying PMS,” he said.

“I got the information through the MD of Indorama and immediately alerted the security agencies. From what we are seeing this morning, it was not a very pleasant case.

“We recorded, from what I am seeing, a huge number of vehicles being destroyed and souls lost.

“I have already asked the security agencies to give us a full brief. So that we can come into the situation fully by seeing how much we can support the families of the bereaved and see how we can cushion the effect of the losses.”

The governor also lamented the deteriorating condition of the Eleme section of the East-West road.

“We all know the situation of this road; it is unfortunate. Most of our people when plying this road do so with caution,” he added.

An unspecified number of people have been killed after tankers laden with petroleum products burst into flames on a section of the east-west road in Eleme, Rivers state.

The incident, which left travellers stranded for hours, occurred on Friday night.

Some of the victims of the multiple explosions were said to have been trapped in their vehicles as the blasts raged.

The cause of the explosions are not clear at the time of reporting. However, eyewitnesses have pointed to “dangerous driving and negligence”.

The Nation quoted Segun Owolabi, an eyewitness, as saying that one tanker collided with a vehicle before bursting into flames, leading to a domino effect.

“I saw four dead bodies burnt. Some may have been in the bushes because many ran away. I saw a whole stretch of vehicles burnt down, trailers burnt down,” Owolabi said.

“There seems to be a truck carrying substances and it was as if it had collided with another vehicle that may have ignited the fire. Over 20 vehicles burnt down and several people trapped.

“There may be more bodies. Oh my God this is a tragedy. A stretch of vehicles burnt.”

Another eyewitness said he heard a loud explosion from a petrochemical complex in the area.

“I heard a very loud sound about 20 minutes ago, and people were shouting,” he said.

“The sound came from the petrochemical company area. So when I came out I saw thick smoke with fire from a distance.”

The inferno reportedly raged for hours before it was put out by firefighters.