Calabar gas explosion

We are worried that gas/fuel tanker explosions around the country seem to have become a recurring decimal. In 2020, there were 1,531 petrol tanker crashes resulting in 535 deaths and 1,142 injuries. A gas tanker and trailer collision in Lagos resulted in two deaths and destroyed a series of properties, including warehouses, recently.

Between 2022 and 2025, petrol tanker explosions resulted in 493 deaths. In Jigawa State, a fuel tanker explosion killed about 150 people who were scooping fuel from the damaged vehicle.

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These records are seemingly just a few of the recorded tragedies across the country.

While we sympathise with the victims of the Cross River incident, it is sad that this might not be the last tragedy except actions are taken to forestall a re-currence. Nigerian transportation system has been a story in lack of planning.

For a country with the population and resources at our disposal, transportation by air, land, rail and sea ought to be better planned.

Most of the truck explosions we have had are due to bad roads, reckless and ill-trained drivers and vehicles that are not roadworthy.

In most countries, heavy duty vehicles move at certain times of the day to avoid obstructing regular traffic, vehicles are regularly inspected and the sanity and social behaviour of drivers closely monitored for adherence to safety regulations.

Lack of functional rail transportation puts pressure on the roads and distorts the whole road transportation system.

The Calabar tragedy is sad because it ought to have been prevented or at least controlled. Does the citing of a gas station in a densely populated neighbourhood align with the safety standards expected of such facilities?

We recommend a thorough investigation into the incident to determine what led to this monumental tragedy. Why were there no fire-fighting facilities around? Were the private filling station workers trained to provide immediate safety measures?

What were the roles of government ministries and agencies, including the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Ltd (NNPCL), in charge of  supervision and monitoring of such facilities?  What of the town planning agency in the state? Did they ever raise a query to the owners if the citing of the facility went against town planning regulations?

The governor, Bassey Edet Otu, has gone to the facility and as usual made statements.  However, what is really important is that he must summon all those whose jobs ought to have made the tragedy either impossible or reduce the scale of impact.

If all the enforcement agencies did their jobs well, all the incidents might not be eliminated but the tragedies would be drastically reduced.

We wish that this Calabar tragedy would force an introspection in the whole system so that the right things would be done.

These tragedies are not natural disasters, they are a result of human failures. And they continue to happen because we don’t punish the culprits.

A system that functions is a product of consistent efforts by both the leaders and the citizens. The toll on the population is getting too high and it’s better to act now than give room for more tragedies.