A 41-year-old commercial bus driver, who augments his daily income by operating as a vulcaniser by the side is also one of the victims at the Otedola Fire Accident.

The father of three and native of Osun State invests much of his energy and time into productive activities that would help put food on the table for his family.

On Thursday afternoon, while ferrying passengers in his 18-seater bus from Lagos to the Mowe/Ibafo area of neighbouring Ogun, a bigger worry was added to Olaitan’s growing list.

A speeding tanker laden with around 33, 000 litres of Premium Motor Spirit – one of the deadliest and easily combustible liquids in the world – that had lost control suddenly fell a few metres away from Otedola Bridge, a popular axis along the Lagos/Ibadan Expressway, spilling its content all over the place and bursting into flames shortly afterwards.


The 41-year-old whose commercial bus was directly behind the ill-fated tanker, the moment brought a glimpse of perhaps what the end of the world would look like.

“I saw darkness everywhere immediately the tanker exploded,” he said while speaking with Saturday Beat on his hospital bed where yards of bandages now strapped him like an armour.


“I thought I was going to die. It was as if the end had come. There was commotion everywhere, just like in a war. Nothing else came to my mind.

We all believed it was the end,” he added soberly as he narrated his ordeal to his teary-eyed wife – Faidat – and other family members, who had come to check on him on Friday morning.

While attributing his narrow escape to divine grace, the Ile-Ife indigene said that for a few minutes after the tanker fell, he and others in the vehicle were confused as to what to do.


He revealed that it was while it was being argued that the content of the truck was diesel or petrol that the entire place erupted in flames. According to him, after being briefly knocked out by the sound of the explosion, he managed to regain consciousness and enough strength to force his way out of the bus through the front passenger seat. But even after exiting the vehicle, his fears were far from over.

“I jumped into a gutter full of dirty water immediately I forced my way out of the bus,” he said, slowly adjusting his sitting position on the bed. “I had hoped to use the water to quench the fire on my body but unknown to me the water had already mixed with the petrol that had spilled from the tanker. That compounded my problem.

While I was struggling to quench the fire on my body, I did not know that my head was burning. I managed to run across the road and into an uncompleted building where people around helped me put out the fire. That was my saving grace, otherwise only God knows what would have happened to me,” he stated.

Gossip From Ebiwali--
http://www.ebiwalisgossip.com/2018/06/its-was-like-war-we-thought-world-has.html

Sorry fah...

This are terrifying time.i pray we get it right soonest or this madness of negligence in our polity will send us all packing from this country one day(soonest)

This are terrifying time.i pray we get it right soonest or this madness of negligence in our polity will send us all packing from this country one day(soonest)

Anjade lo loni Eledumare. ji jade WA, maje a pade Agbako. Ohun ti a o je la wa lo baba, ma je apade Ohun ti o je wa

this is so terrible. sorry dear thank God you survived it

Thank God? what about the families of the dead? This is insensitive.

nna na God oo

add graphic please

Georgemurphy:
This are terrifying time.i pray we get it right soonest or this madness of negligence in our polity will send us all packing from this country one day(soonest)

YEA BRO, I HAVE BEEN PRAYING FOR LONG, LET'S KEEP PRAYING TO GET IT RIGHT JUST LIKE THE JAPANESE DID

Thank God for your lives.

A speeding tanker laden with around 33, 000 litres of Premium

But a dashboard video in circulation showed that the tanker was stationary. Why this lie?

we thank God for his mercies sir....

Na wa oooo. One problem in Nigeria or the other.

Na wa o

And someone gave a figure of 9

Exaggeration

I wish the injured victims quick recovery.

BUHARI IS SITTING ON THE PETROLEUM MINISTRY BUT DOING NOTHING WITH THAT OFFICE.

A bad character he inherited from Obasanjo that a President is equally qualified to head the ministry of Petroleum.

Give that office to another competent minister that is innovative and creative,but Buhari is refusing due to personal greed.

Cameroun and Canada are using train via railway line to convey petroleum products thereby decongesting the public highway of dangerous tankers.

But in Nigeria, our leaders are blind to new or old technological knowhow that is used in the industrialised world.

IT IS SIMPLY OUTDATED TO BE USING TANKER TO BE CONVEYING PETROLEUM PRODUCTS MORESO IN PUBLIC HIGHWAY.

The development of an efficient railway line system that will be used to convey petroleum products and agricultural goods is what the Nigerian government should put in place to avert this needless tragedy.

A speeding tanker laden with around 33, 000 litres of Premium

But a dashboard video in circulation showed that the tanker was stationary. Why this lie?

What a narrow escape

They were arguing whether it's petrol or diesel, like Wtf!!!!!!

Thank God for ur life sir. I pray that the burns will heal speedily...in Jesus name

They were arguing... That's all I saw.

TrumpedL:


But a dashboard video in circulation showed that the tanker was stationary. Why this lie?

Hope you know what you are saying, Mr investigator.

TrumpedL:


But a dashboard video in circulation showed that the tanker was stationary. Why this lie?

Nigerians and their embellishments.

I’ve never seen a speeding fuel tanker in Nigeria.

Their dangerous driving and condition are not related to speed.

thank God for his life

the tanker didn't explode immediately it fell, it took abt 2 complete minutes before catching fire

the affected people is what I call " stupid faith"
even if a kerosene tanker, I stay mikes away clear from that area

Dicksonpal:
There were arguing whether it's petrol or diesel, like Wtf!!!!!!

Just imagine the stupidity.

They should be arguing that from across the road.

EgunMogaji:


Nigerians and their embellishments.

I’ve never seen a speeding fuel tanker in Nigeria.

which part of Nigeria do you live or do you live in every part of the country?