Senate probes Lagos gas explosions, makes case for victims

The Senate yesterday directed its Committees on Petroleum Downstream, Gas Resources to investigate the remote and immediate causes of gas explosions in Alimosho and Ifako-Ijaiye LGAs in Lagos.

It directed the National Emergency Management Agency and the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development to immediately send relief materials to affected victims and offset medical bills of hospitalized ones.

This followed a motion by Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola (APC, Lagos), who noted that there had been a recurrence of gas explosions in recent times in Lagos West senatorial district.

On September 24, a massive gas explosion, caused by the burst tyre igniting a gas leak of a stuck 30 tonne Gas Tanker in Iju-Ishaga area of Lagos, caused serious body injuries to no fewer than 44 persons and destroyed multi-billion naira properties and businesses.

Two weeks after, on October 10, a similar gas explosion occurred at IpajaAyoba, Alimosho LGA when an LPG Tanker in the process of discharging gas at a gas plant exploded, killing 18 people and injuring many others, while properties worth millions of naira were burnt.

Similar gas explosions also happened in 2016, 2018 (Abule-Egba), 2019 (Abule - Egba) 2020 (Ijegun), 2020 (Ile-Epo, OkeOdo) and Abule Ado.

Senator Adeola expressed worry that Nigerians living and conducting legitimate businesses in the senatorial district now live in justifiable fear of not only losing their lives or those of love ones from these frequent explosive fire disasters but also their properties and investments.

The Senate, accordingly, asked its committees to probe the incidents with a view to prevent reoccurrence and report back in two weeks.