BREAKING: Gas explosion destroys rice mill, fuel tanker in Niger

A gas explosion at F&S Investment gas station in Sabon Wuse, along the Abuja-Kaduna expressway, Tafa LGA, Niger State, has destroyed a rice mill, a fuel tanker, and other properties.

The incident, which occurred at about 10:30 p.m. on Saturday, sent residents scampering for safety. While no casualties have been reported, it marks the fourth gas-related explosion in Niger State in less than a month.

How It Happened

Eyewitnesses say the explosion started while a gas-laden tanker was offloading at the gas station.

“The tanker was offloading when some parts of it caught fire. The fire engulfed the entire gas station and touched some other properties, including Ngil Rice Mill,” said a resident, David Sakoma.

Another resident, Dorcas Andrew, described the chaos, adding that many people stayed back to watch the fire spread.

A video shared by a Facebook user, Kabir Bako, captured the fire’s intensity, with a voice narrating:

“As you can see, this inferno happened around 10:30 p.m. See how gas keeps exploding.”

The petrol station nearby was spared, according to the video.

Recent Explosions in Niger State

This explosion comes three weeks after a twin tanker explosion in Dikko, Gurara LGA, which claimed over 90 lives and injured 56 others. The victims were given a mass burial, and Nigeria’s First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu, recently visited Minna to support affected families.

The latest explosion site is just a few meters from Dikko, where multi-million-naira properties were lost in the previous disaster.

Authorities are yet to release an official statement on the latest incident.