Scores of people were on
Saturday evening roasted by fuel
fire that engulfed Molete area of
Ibadan in Oyo State.
A truck carrying fuel, it was
gathered, fell at the popular
Molete Under- Bridge at about
9p.m and spilt its content on the
road. The fuel connected the
nearby drainage and travelled a
long distance before it caught
fire.
Checks by Daily Sun revealed
that many roadside traders,
passersby, commercial
motorcyclists, motorists and
others in the vicinity at the time,
suddenly saw themselves on
fire.
Eyewitnesses said a pregnant
woman and her child as well as a
mother and her two children
were among the victims of the
inferno.
The fuel tanker, according to
reports, was coming from
Challenge end of Molete before
it had a brake failure. The driver
reportedly lost control of the
tanker before it rammed into a
pole, which led to the tragedy.
Some football lovers were said
to be discussing the loss of
Nigeria to Sudan by one goal in
the first leg of the Africa
Confederation Cup qualifiers
under the bridge when the fire
disaster began.
Also, the inferno was said to
have been cruel to many people
who ran into nearby shops for
cover, roasting them with the
shops.
The driver of the tanker,
according to eyewitnesses, was
also killed in the rampaging fire.
He was said to be shouting
brake failure in order to alert
the people to the impending
danger before the accident
occurred.
A man, who introduced himself
as Adekunle Ayinla, said but for
the timely intervention of a
combined team of fire fighters
and security operatives, the
tragedy would have been worse.
Meanwhile, the All Progressives
Congress (APC) in Oyo State has
described the inferno, which
resulted in the death of an
unspecified number of persons,
as another sad chapter in the
history of the state despite the
untiring efforts of the present
administration to forestall the
occurrence of such incidents in
all parts of the state.
The APC, in a statement issued
by its Director of Publicity and
Strategy, Olawale Sadare, said
the Molete inferno was not only
unfortunate but also devastating
in view of the fact that Oyo State
“at the moment has a
government which prioritises
every pro-active measure
required to guarantee the safety
and well-being of the people ir­
respective of their status or
background.”
“It is most unfortunate that a
disaster of this magnitude can
befall our dear state again after
the administration of Senator
Abiola Ajimobi had left no one in
doubt of its passion for a
disaster-free, violence-free and
crime-free society. We take this
as an act of God even as we
share in the agony of the victims
and members of their family,”
the statement added
Meanwhile, Governor Abiola
Ajimobi of Oyo State has
commiserated with families of
those who lost their lives in an
inferno at the Molete area of
Ibadan, the state capital, praying
that God will give them the
fortitude to bear the loss.
A tanker had somersaulted last
Saturday night beside the
Molete Bridge, discharging its
content in the process and went
into flame, which resulted in the
death of many people, many of
whom were roadside traders.
Governor Ajimobi, who arrived
at about 8 am, was conducted
round the scene of the inferno
by the state Commissioner of
Police, Mr. Kola Sodipo.
The governor ordered that a
crane be brought immediately
to take the carcass of the tanker
that had caused gridlock to allow
for free traffic flow.
Speaking with journalists,
Ajimobi commiserated with the
families of the deceased and
urged them to take solace in the
fact that death would come
when it would.
He said many who sought to
take political advantage of his
administration’s genuine love
for the people of the state, espe­
cially street traders, must have
seen the danger of politicising
sincere government policies.

RIP to the dead.