Residents look at a calcined tanker truck after an explosion which killed 60 people
NIAMEY, May 9 (NNN-AGENCIES) — The death toll from a tanker truck
explosion near the international airport in Niger’s capital, Niamey, has
risen to 60, authorities said.
The tally is likely to rise further as the prognosis is poor for several
people who sustained severe burns, security official Hamani Adamou Abdoul-Aziz told state television.
The overturned tanker exploded Sunday night as crowds gathered to
collect spilt fuel.
Before the blast, people ignored police trying to keep them away, and
threw stones at firefighters, the police said.
The massive explosion on the RN1 route near the international airport
left the burnt truck’s wreckage, motorbikes and debris scattered over the
road. Nearby houses were damaged by fire.
About 40 people were reported injured, most of them in a very serious
condition in hospital with severe burns.
Niger began three days of mourning on Wednesday with flags flying at half-mast as two further deaths were recorded, up from the initial death toll of 58 people earlier.
The cause of the accident remained under investigation. — NNN-AGENCIES
