by Chi Ibe

More than 12 buildings were burnt down on Monday night after a fully loaded petroleum tanker passing through a residential area fell off the road and spilled about 33, 000 litres of petrol, reports say.

An eyewitness at the Omitowoju area of Ibadan, in Oyo State said it would have been more disastrous if the residents in the area had gone to bed. According to Dayo Omolade, the tanker driver was about linking Inalende road when he lost control.

Residents were said to have battled the flames for about two hours and were joined by fire fighters who arrived the scene.

According to reports, no casualty was reported though other reports claim the damage was to about 30 homes and shops.

Vanguard reports:

Residents who were in their houses rushed out when they reportedly heard the deafening noise of the explosion.

It was gathered that the driver in an attempt to take another route following the closure of the Dugbe/Mokola road occasioned by the ongoing construction of a flyover at Mokola by the Oyo state government emptied the 33,000 litres of fuel which immediately caught fire.

Men from the state fire service rushed to the scene after a distress call was made, with other security agents directing the movement of the people in the area.

A fire service personnel who said he was not instructed to talk said he could not tell if there was any casualty until the fire was put out completely.