Ten killed as gasoline tanker explodes in southwest Nigeria

ABUJA, Oct. 20 (Xinhua) -- At least 10 people were killed in a raging inferno that erupted early Thursday when a gasoline-laden tanker exploded following a road accident along a busy expressway in Nigeria's southwest region, traffic police said.

Five vehicles -- the gasoline tanker, three trucks, and a bus -- were involved in the incident that occurred near Sagamu, a town of Ogun state along the ever-busy Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, said Ahmed Umar, a sector commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps in Ogun, at a press briefing in Abeokuta, the state capital.

A preliminary investigation into the incident indicated that one of the trucks was traveling at top speed and rammed into the gasoline tanker after losing control, resulting in a fire outbreak due to leakage from the tanker, Umar said.

The bus and two other trucks near the scene of the accident were also engulfed by the raging inferno, while all the dead victims were those trapped in the bus, he said.

He advised motorists to drive cautiously, obey traffic rules and regulations, and consider other road users while driving.