Death toll in Niger tanker explosion rises to 86, with 55 injured

The Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA) has confirmed that 86 people lost their lives in the tanker explosion that occurred on Saturday at Dikko Junction along the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway in Gurara Local Council of the state.

Director General of NSEMA, Abdullahi Baba Arah, disclosed yesterday that the bodies of the victims had been recovered and buried.

According to him, 80 of the deceased were interred in a mass grave at the premises of Dikko Primary Health Care Centre, while five were taken by their families for private burial. One other victim succumbed to injuries at the healthcare centre.

Arah noted that the mass burial, which took place on Saturday, January 18, was carried out in collaboration with Gurara Local Council and supported by courageous volunteers. The exercise lasted from 5:00 p.m. to midnight.

Providing an update on the injured, he revealed that 55 people were receiving medical attention for various degrees of burns and other injuries sustained during the explosion.