Many deaths after huge blast at Nigerian gas plant

Completely burnt bodies in inferno make estimates of death toll difficult.

A frame grab from footage of the blast scene at an industrial gas plant in Nnewi, south-eastern Nigeria, taken on December 25, 2015 by TV Continental. TV Continental / AFP

LAGOS // An explosion at an industrial gas plant in southeastern Nigeria on Christmas Eve left several people charred beyond recognition, police said, as fatality numbers ranged from single-digit figures to scores.

The blast at the Inter Corp Oil’s gas plant, a subsidiary of Nigerian conglomerate Chicason Group, started around noon on Thursday, engulfing the industrial city of Nnewi in black clouds of billowing smoke.

The fire raged on for hours, destroying buildings and cars.

By the time firefighters doused the last flames, there were charred corpses on the ash-covered ground, according to reports.

The presidency said “tens” of people had been killed.

“It was a huge inferno,” police spokesman Ali Okechukwu said on Friday. “We have found six bodies outside the perimeter, two more bodies were found in the adjoining building, bringing the total number of casualties to eight.

“Six more persons were injured and referred to the hospital.”

Mr Okechukwu said an investigation into the explosion was under way.

The gas-fuelled fire spread to a large surrounding area instantly, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) spokesman James Eze said.

“About 300 metres from the gas line all the plants there were burnt, houses from 400 metres away were affected, heavy machines too,” Mr Eze said, speaking by phone from the Nnamdi Azikiwe University Teaching Hospital where victims of the blast were taken for treatment.

He put the total number of casualties at four, barring any missing who were burnt without any trace.

“The fire (was) so strong as to burn the bones into ashes, but nobody has come forward with a missing person,” Mr Eze said.

There were conflicting accounts about the cause of the explosion and the authorities have not explained what triggered it.

Some local reports said that the blast occurred after a truck was off-loading butane cooking gas for customers stocking up on fuel for Christmas festivities.

Others said it was triggered when a leaking consignment of gas was being moved to the company dump.

“The cause is yet to be determined. A few people lost their lives. Some people suffered burns of various degrees,” said Anambra state governor, Willy Obiano, who visited the scene of the accident.

A mainly Christian city, Nnewi is known as a busy hub for trading spare vehicle parts.

Nigeria is Africa’s largest oil producer, deriving the bulk of its money through the commodity.

Accidents happen frequently in the country, usually when pipelines are damaged by people stealing crude oil.

In July, 12 people died and three were injured after an explosion while doing repair work on a pipeline in the Niger delta.

Over the past decade, hundreds of people in the continent’s biggest economy have been killed in explosions.

The country loses an estimated 300,000 barrels a day to gangs that syphon crude from pipelines, according to the state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation.

* Agence France-Presse