A petrol and gas station has exploded on Edibe Edibe Street, Calabar South, Cross River State, injuring residents and destroying property, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) is reporting.
The explosion, which occurred at about 10am on Saturday, razed the facility identified as Fonex Gas Station.
It destroyed fuel tanks and vehicles within the premises.
NAN further reports that the station, located in a densely populated area, affected nearby shops and buildings, forcing residents and business owners to flee to safety.
Several persons sustained various degrees of injury, with some treated at nearby patent medicine stores, while others were taken to hospitals for further medical attention.
The chaotic situation caused by the incident presented a field day for hoodlums to loot goods from affected shops and the damaged facility.
Many residents were seen attempting to contain the fire using sand, water, and improvised methods as the emergency responders were yet to arrive at the scene.
Christiana Uti, an eyewitness, told NAN that calls to the fire service by some persons at the scene did not yield immediate results as they responded that their fire trucks were not functional.
Uti said that the University of Calabar fire truck later arrived even when the affected facilities had been damaged severely.
Olumayowa Olomola, State Commanding Officer of the Federal Fire Service, while speaking with NAN, attributed the inability of her office to respond to the gas station fire to bad fire trucks.
Olomola explained that the federal truck was recently vandalised by hoodlums in Calabar during an operation.
According to her: “Not only was our truck vandalised, some of our fire officers were inflicted with injuries during the operation.
“This state government is fully aware of this and has promised to fix the truck and treat the injured officers.
“But as we speak, we have made several follow up on this, and they have not responded several months later.”
On his part, Emmanuel Ajom, Director of the State Fire Service, said his fire trucks were under maintenance and could not respond to the gas fire incident.
Ajom explained that the trucks were procured about 14 years ago and presently undergoing routine maintenance services.
Different eyewitnesses gave conflicting accounts, with some alleging that a phone call near the gas station triggered the explosion while others gave other reasons.
A mechanic, Sam Ekpenyong, attributed the incident to a possible electrical fault or expired equipment at the station.
Ekpeyong said: “I believe the fire must have been caused by a faulty electrical connection in the fuel station because there was no fire anywhere around the station that might have triggered an explosion.”
The spokesperson of the Akwa Ibom State Police Command and an Assistant Superintendent of Police, ASP Sunday Akata, confirmed the incident, adding that some officers had been deployed to the scene.
The State Commissioner of Police, Rashid Afegbua, was later at the scene to assess the situation and maintain law and order around the area.
NAN also witnessed emotional scenes as parents were seen searching for their wards amidst the chaos.
