JIGAWA STATE, Nigeria: A fuel tanker overturned late on Tuesday in Nigeria’s northern state of Jigawa after the driver lost control of the vehicle, spilling petrol which exploded and killed at least 147 people, police and state emergency services said on Wednesday (Oct 16).
The accident is one of the worst in recent times in Africa’s most populous nation, battling widespread security threats and a cost of living crisis.
Haruna Mairiga, head of Jigawa State Emergency Services, put the death toll from the accident at 147.
Local police spokesperson Lawan Shiisu Adam said the tanker was travelling from the ancient city of Kano to Yobe State in the north, when the driver lost control near Majia town in Taura local government area, about 530 kilometers north of the capital Abuja, causing it to overturn and spill fuel.
