At least eight people, including a three-year-old child and her mother, were feared dead in a tanker explosion on Friday at Omenta Okpe in Okpe Local Government Area of Delta State.
PUNCH Online reports that the incident happened when the ill-fated tanker from Effurun lost control while attempting to pass another truck a short distance from the boundary bridge between Uvwie and Okpe Local Government Area.
Observers said the victims were badly burned, while many others suffered various degrees of injuries and were taken to the hospital.
The event, which took place around 10 am, also resulted in damage to several buildings, vehicles, and heavy-duty trucks.
According to witnesses, the mother of the three-year-old child was caught in the intense fire while trying to save her child.
It was also learned that another victim of the fire, a high school student, had just returned from school only to meet his tragic end in the fire.
At the time of this report, the Director-General, Warri, Uvwie and Environs Development Agency, WUEDA, Prince Enjinyere, was on the scene evaluating the extent of damage caused by the explosion and mobilizing support to remove the tanker from the road to prevent further damage.
