appConfigEntityId

bodyType

customContents

entityId

entityUuid

isVideo

articlePageQuery

article

articleSchemaContent

content

hooksArticlePageAdvertisementConfigArticle

appConfig

filter

json

liveArticle

Agence France-Presse

A gas explosion in Nigeria’s commercial capital Lagos on Sunday killed at least 15 people, injured many more and destroyed around 50 buildings, emergency services said.
Houses, lorries, cars and motorbikes were torched in the blast.
“15 bodies have been recovered now. So many people have been injured,” national emergency services spokesman Ibrahim Farinloye told AFP, adding that around 50 buildings were also destroyed in the explosion which was followed by a fire.
The blast happened at around 8am (7am GMT) destroyed around 50 buildings in the residential district of Abule Ado.

According to the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) the blast was caused by a truck that “hit gas bottles stacked up in a gas processing plant.
“The impact of the explosion was so huge that it led to the collapse of nearby houses and damage to an NNPC pipeline,” the company added.
“We are recovering dead bodies as we speak and putting them in bags,” said local Red Cross official Adebola Kolawale.
“We have a school here and it’s a residential area. And we have a trade fair here as well.”
Among those inspecting the damage was Lagos resident Abibola Ayo. He said that although he lives three kilometres away, the blast was so strong he felt it in his home.
Coronavirus delays Nigeria’s US$1.5 billion Chinese-built rail project
In front of a crowd of onlookers, rescuers sought to remove rubble from a girls boarding school which has more than 250 pupils.
Pipeline and tanker truck explosions are common in Nigeria, where most people live in poverty even though the country is the biggest producer of oil on the continent, with around two million barrels per day.
Some incidents happen when residents try to siphon off oil or petrol from pipelines or when tanker drivers have accidents on the country’s ill-maintained roads.


Protests over US Ebola centre in Kenya kill 2, court keeps block on site

WHO chief ends DR Congo visit as group warns Ebola likely spread undetected

US to slash number of embassies in Africa that process visas

Young Kenyans protest Ebola quarantine centre for US citizens

Africa

Huge Nigeria gas explosion kills at least 15 people, destroys 50 buildings

People gather near the site of an explosion in Lagos. Photo: AP Photo

People gather near the site of an explosion in Lagos, Nigeria. Sunday March 15, 2020. An explosion hit Nigeria's commercial capital of Lagos early Sunday, killing at least 15 people and sparking search-and- rescue efforts to save people still trapped in collapsed buildings, emergency officials said. (AP Photos/Sunday Alamba)

Coronavirus delays Nigeria’s Chinese-built rail project

China has backed various rail projects in Nigeria, including a link from Lagos to Ibadan, and the Abuja light rail train (pictured). Photo: Xinhua

A Nigerian Immigration officer, left, speaks to Chinese nationals upon arrival at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos, Nigeria, Wednesday, March 4, 2020.(AP Photo/ Sunday Alamba)

Huge Nigeria gas explosion kills at least 15 people, destroys 50 buildings

.css-1mniedq{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;} Explosion happened at around 8am in the residential district of Abule Ado

Explosion happened at around 8am in the residential district of Abule Ado