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Lagos (AFP) – Nigeria was faced Friday with calls to improve road and road safety after nine people were killed when a tanker with failing brakes crashed and exploded , engulfing dozens of vehicles at rush hour in Lagos. It was produced around 17:30 (16:30 GMT) Thursday on the Lagos-Ibadan highway, one of the main roads outside the city. Fifty-four vehicles were eviscerated
Commuters were forced to walk as traffic flowed throughout the city and a clean-up operation continued all night until the road was cleared. reopened around 7:30 am.
In the light, the burnt shells of cars and buses were still towed from the road, which was blackened and covered with ashes for more than one kilometer.
Oil tanker fires are not uncommon on Nigerian roads, which are often in poor condition and where vehicles are often old and poorly maintained.
Blocks are often placed behind the wheels of rusty trucks when they are parked in traffic.
Authorities stated that the first accident was caused by brakes. failure. Motorists caught in the chaos also asked why fully loaded tankers were allowed on the road at rush hour.
The oil tanker struck in Thursday's accident was carrying 33,000 liters (8,700 US gallons) of gasoline at the time.
Suleiman Yakubu, of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), said that the location of the Otedola Bridge in the Berger region was a descent that drivers often take to high speed.
Lagos Police spokesman Chike Oti Tank truck drivers and articulated trucks were warned to "put in place all the necessary security checks"
Another road safety officer, who asked not to be identified, added: "The driver must be blamed and the owner of the vehicle.
" People do not keep their vehicles in good condition. "
Bolarinwa Dolarinwa Mufutau, a mechanic of roadside, said that he had just repaired a car when he saw the truck the road.
"I could also hear the driver yelling" brake failure, brake failure ". I saw the (assistant) motorist trying to put a brake to prevent the tanker from backing off, "he told AFP.
" But the truck is crushed on the corner and immediately there was a bang. I thought it was a bomb and there was an explosion and a fire everywhere, so I started running away. "
A fire broke out in seconds, forcing motorists to abandon their cars and run away.
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