The National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) has confirmed that the death toll from the petrol tanker explosion that rocked the Essa community along the Bida–Badeggi–Agaie road in Katcha Local Government Area of Niger State has climbed to 45.
The agency also said that 63 other persons sustained varying degrees of burns from the inferno, which occurred earlier in the week.
This was disclosed in a situation update issued on Friday by the Head of NEMA Operations, Minna Office, Hussaini Isah, who oversees both Niger and Kwara States.
According to Isah, preliminary findings revealed that the explosion occurred after a tanker lost control due to a bad section of the road, leading to a fatal crash and subsequent fire outbreak.
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“The fatalities now stand at 45, comprising 12 males, 27 females, and six children,” he said. @A total of 63 persons were injured, including 24 males, 32 females, and seven children.”
Isah identified Essa as the worst-hit community, noting that most of the casualties were residents who rushed to the scene to scoop petrol from the fallen tanker before it exploded.
The NEMA official expressed concern that fuel scooping continued to claim innocent lives despite repeated public warnings.
“All the victims were casualties of fuel scooping following the crash,” he said, describing the act as “a dangerous and recurring tragedy in rural communities.”
Many of the injured victims were initially treated at the Essa Primary Health Centre and Idris Private Hospital, before being transferred to Umaru Sanda General Hospital, Bida, and the Federal Medical Centre, Bida, for more intensive care.
Isah confirmed that 14 critically injured victims had been referred to the Gwagwalada Specialist Hospital, Abuja, for advanced medical treatment.
He added that the Niger State Government had supplied medications to the affected hospitals to support emergency response efforts.
“The government has provided medications to hospitals treating the victims, while some persons have voluntarily discharged themselves after receiving initial treatment,” he said.
Isah said several emergency response agencies were mobilised to the scene, including the Police, Department of State Services (DSS), Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), NSEMA, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), vigilante groups, and community volunteers.
Their joint efforts helped to evacuate victims, restore order, and prevent further escalation of the fire incident.
The NEMA operations head lamented that traffic congestion, poor road conditions, and weak network signals hampered timely rescue operations and coordination between first responders.
“The poor state of the road, coupled with traffic and poor communication networks, slowed down our rescue efforts,” Isah said.
He, however, assured that NEMA and the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) had visited all affected hospitals to verify patient lists and assess their conditions.
Isah disclosed that plans were underway to provide relief materials and food items to the families of victims, many of whom lost relatives or sustained severe injuries in the disaster.
He also reiterated NEMA’s warning to Nigerians to avoid scooping fuel from accident scenes to prevent further tragedies.
“We have continued to warn residents to stay away from spilled fuel. These incidents are preventable if people obey safety advisories,” he cautioned.
Naija News reports that the tanker explosion occurred earlier this week when a petrol-laden tanker crashed on a damaged stretch of the Bida–Badeggi–Agaie highway, spilling fuel across the road.
Moments later, the spilt petrol caught fire, killing scores of people and burning several vehicles and motorcycles.
The incident adds to a string of fuel-related explosions across the country, often linked to poor road infrastructure, reckless driving, and fuel scooping by local residents.
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