Fuel tanker explosion kills 45 people in Nigeria

Saratu Abubakar, Staff Reporter

A fuel tanker explosion claimed the lives of 45 in Nigeria on Tuesday.

Over 100 were injured in the tragedy.

The toll rose because after the petrol tanker crashed off the road, a crowd gathered to take some fuel, the emergency services said.

The accident happened in Ahumbe in Benue state. The truck was travelling through the village.

As some residents rushed to collect the fuel, a fire erupted causing a huge blast.

"We have recovered 45 corpses of the dead while 101 others sustained serious fire burns," Benue state Federal Road Safety Commission Sector Commander Aliyu Baba said.

An official at the scene said that those who sustained injures, may not survive.

The official said the inferno began when a bus with passengers tried to pass through the scene and its exhaust pipe scraped the ground causing sparks to fly.

Several passengers in the bus were burnt to death. The explosion damaged one house.