To prevent the potential risk of an explosion, the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, alongside the State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), have successfully evacuated residents of Obadeyi who were siphoning fuel from a tanker that had overturned in the area.
New Telegraph gathered that a tanker carrying fuel overturned at Obadeyi bus stop, close to Meiran on the Lagos-Abeokuta expressway on Thursday morning.
Confirming the development in a statement made available to newsmen, Taofiq Adebayo, the Director of Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department of LASTMA, stated that the incident involved a tanker with the registration number JJJ 596 XX, which overturned around 6:10 am, resulting in the spillage of its contents onto the expressway.
Adebayo revealed that the agency had to disperse residents who were collecting spilled fuel to prevent a potential fire explosion.
He said, “After arriving at the scene, LASTMA personnel immediately called the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Services, including the Lasema Response Unit (LRU), and immediately secured the environment against area boys and other members of the public who had started scooping diesel with buckets/jerry cans.
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“Preliminary investigations revealed that the falling tanker fully loaded with diesel was coming from Abule-Egba going to Ijaiye before the driver lost control due to a brake failure at Obadeyi.
“There was a traffic diversion at Ahmadiya by both Ahmadiya Hospital Way likewise those moving against those from the toll gate.”
Traffic Officer Ajalekoko Bolade, known as Bravo 19 and stationed in Abule-Egba, who headed the LASTMA rescue operations at the location, verified that the tanker’s driver absconded promptly following the incident.
Providing additional details regarding the event, Margaret Adeseye, the Director of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, mentioned that they received an emergency call at 6:50 a.m Upon arriving at the scene, they found a 45,000-liter diesel tanker had overturned and spilled its contents on the road.
Adeseye explained that the spilled content was being mitigated by the Agege Fire Station using a substantial amount of chemical foam compounds to prevent a secondary incident.