The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), Ebonyi State command, has called on the federal and state governments to ban movement of inflammable products in the day time by patrol tankers to end incessant explosions.
The NSCDC’s call came against the backdrop of a similar call in a widely circulated statement yesterday by the Senator representing Enugu North in the 10th Senator Okey Ezea, on the disastrous Enugu petrol tanker explosion on Saturday, in which scores of people died while many others were injured and many vehicles and other private and public property burnt.
While extending his condolences ‘on behalf of the good people of Enugu North Senatorial District’ “to the families of the dead and wish the injured a speedy recovery,” Ezea had stressed: “I have always believed that … given the bad state of our roads, it’s time to consider banning fuel-laden tankers from all Nigerian roads in the daytime; they should not be seen on the roads before midnight.”
“Ordinarily, fuel should be conveyed through pipelines and not by tankers plying the same roads with other motorists. The need to keep our roads motorable and ensure competent supervision of vehicles has become more urgent,” he had added.
Lamenting that many souls have been wasted in the country in petrol tanker explosions and that it was high time the federal and state governments took a holistic approach against it, State Commandant of the Corps, Francis Nnadi, who made the recommendation when members of Correspondents Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Ebonyi State chapter led by its Chairman, Comrade Uchenna Inya paid him courtesy visit, noted that global weather change has adversely affected a lot of things, including movement of inflammable products.
He called on other security agencies in the country to collaborate and end incessant gas explosions in Nigeria.
“Two, three weeks ago, if you can recall what happened in Niger State, it went viral. We lost a lot of soul, over 100.
“Somewhere in Ogun State last week, such happened again. Just say before yesterday, I was away from Awka when that incident happened. I went and used the old road.
“When I came in, I raised an alert to the state government. I said I am going to talk with other security agencies; road safety who are our partners when it comes to the safety of our roads, the police who are in charge of internal security, NSCDC who are first respondents when it comes to disaster management, the Nigerian Army who takes care of our outer territories.
“We need to come together and let us talk about the safety of our roads. These tankers moving around during the day time is not doing us well.
“Ebonyi State government can say no tanker enters my territory in the daytime on the roads. We can do it, you can only move at nights when the roads are free. Once it’s 6:am, park wherever you are. The weather is changing, this global weather has affected a lot of things.
“At the slightest touch, it will ignite and only God knows the people that will be roasted. Just like the gas plant that I went to seal, over 2.8tons. They cook beside it, you see children playing around it. Of course, you know what that could have been. PMS is inflammable but LPGs is highly inflammable. It travels like a rocket.
“Let us stop these tankers laden with inflammable materials coming in the daytime when the roads are choked. We can recommend this to the government, we can actually enforce it. All filling station owners, gas owners, if you have to move in your products here, let it be when the roads are safe. Once it has to do with day time, anything can happen.”
“We have to stop these tanker drivers from operating during the day,” Nnadi emphasized. “They have an association, we call them for a meeting, tell your drivers once it is 6:am, park wherever you are. You don’t notice these things happening at night, it is because there will be no contact and the weather is calm at night. So, you hardly have that kind of incident.
“My take is, let’s have a holistic approach to it. On my own side, to first educate these tanker drivers. You need to educate them otherwise you are going to have issues confronting them.”
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