A tanker laden with Premium Motor Spirits (PMS) caught fire and razed a petrol station in Ogidi, the headquarters of Idemili North Local Government Area of Anambra State, yesterday, while discharging it contents.
An eyewitness said the incident happened at about 10am, when the petrol tanker was off loading its product in the petrol filling station, which sparked fire, causing the inferno.
He noted that no life was lost, saying, “The petrol tanker was discharging fuel at the petrol station, when a small spark of fire was noticed, and before it could be extinguished, the tanker was already in flames, burning down the fuel station.”
However, the State Director, Fire Service, Engr. Martin Agbili, confirmed the incident, saying that his men have successfully put off the fire.
In a statement made available to The Guardian, Agbili said: “At about 09:53am of today (Friday), we received a distress call of a fire outbreak at a Petrol Filling Station at 7th Mile, Ogidi.
“Our fire trucks and firefighters were deployed to the fire incident scene, Nigeria and Federal Fire Service were there to fight the fire. The fire had been completely controlled and extinguished now.
“There was no loss of life while the station was saved. The fire affected the tanker. The cause of the fire outbreak was as a result of spark from the pumping ground during their trans-loading process.
“We will continue to tell petrol filling station owners to stop discharging and trans loading under the intensity of the sun or during the day. This practice is best done in the night or at the early hours of the morning,” Agbili said.
