Residents, shop owners flee as petrol tanker crashes along Nyanya – Mararaba expressway

A tanker loaded with products suspected to be Premium Motor Spirit, popularly known as petrol, has crashed on the Mararaba-Abuja expressway Tuesday morning.

It was gathered that the product spilled from the crashed tanker, flowing uncontrollably into nearby shops and residential areas.

This threw residents into confusion as they scamper for safety.

An eyewitness, who spoke with our correspondent, said as a result of the accident, some hoodlums had taken advantage to loot items from the deserted shops.

An eyewitness, Hassan Abdulkareem, explained that the tanker lost control in an attempt to avoid a pothole on the highway at the popular Mopol Junction in Nyanya, a suburb in the Federal Capital Territory.

He said: “The accident occurred last night [Monday] and because the tank is loaded with PMS, the product leaks from the tank to shops and residential areas.

“This has left many of the shop owners and residents around that axis, evacuating their belongings for fear of unforeseen fire outbreak as a result of the oil spoilage,” he expressed fear.

According to him, the unfortunate incident also led to the barricade of the highway by men of the security forces, while men of the fire service from Karu and Abuja were already on the ground to forestall any eventuality.