No fewer than five people died yesterday after a fuel tanker exploded at Tafa village along the Abuja-Kaduna Expressway.
An eyewitness, who asked not to be named, told journalists in Kaduna that the tanker laden with kerosene was trying to avoid dangerous potholes on the road when it suddenly fell by the roadside and burst into flames.
“Two of the deceased died after inhaling fumes from the flames and the other three were burnt by the fire,” he said.
According to him, many others who sustained severe burns have been hospitalised while several vehicles parked by the roadside were burnt.
Thousands of Abuja-Kaduna bound passengers were left stranded following the incident.
A spokesperson for the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), confirmed the incident to newsmen.
The official, however, said he could not ascertain if lives were lost in the incident.
The busy Kaduna-Abuja highway links the Federal Capital Territory with the North West and North East, with thousands of vehicles plying it every day.
It also links the North with the South through Lokoja, the Kogi State capital.
