Conflicting accounts have emerged regarding the casualties of a violent fuel tanker explosion that erupted along the Benin-Lagos Expressway at Oluku, Edo State. While eyewitnesses and local emergency sources claim that between two and five people lost their lives, the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) maintains that no fatalities have been officially recorded.
​The disaster occurred on Thursday, October 15, 2026, when a petroleum-laden tanker overturned near the Bob Izua Market along the major highway.
​According to eyewitness accounts, the overturned tanker began spilling its volatile contents onto the drainage channels, prompting local residents and passersby to rush toward the spill with jerrycans and buckets to scoop fuel.
Despite attempts by present security personnel to disperse the crowd, the spilled petrol caught fire shortly after, sparking an inferno that rapidly engulfed nearby vehicles and market stalls.
​The blaze gutted multiple shops, completely scorched at least five passenger vehicles and a commercial trailer stranded along the corridor, and left several victims with severe burn injuries.
​Eyewitnesses at the scene and an emergency official speaking on the condition of anonymity claimed that between two and five persons, including a soldier who was assisting with crowd control, succumbed to severe burn injuries. Local reports also indicated that two individuals trapped beneath the fallen tanker suffered critical, life-threatening burns.
​However, the Edo State Sector Commander of the FRSC, Preye Ezekiel Bedford, refuted reports of confirmed deaths while addressing newsmen from the site late Thursday.
​”I got to the scene; I saw the situation. Up till now, the military, fire service, and emergency teams are still working there to put out the remaining embers,” Commander Bedford stated. “As of right now, no death has been officially recorded by our personnel.”
​Bedford urged members of the public to desist from the dangerous habit of fuel scooping during tanker accidents, emphasizing that sustained public awareness campaigns across community centers, town halls, and churches remain crucial to preventing similar tragedies.
​At the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH), emergency teams were placed on high alert as casualties were rushed to the facility.
​The Chief Medical Director of UBTH, Prof. Idia Ize-Iyamu, was reported to be directly coordinating medical interventions across the hospital’s accident, trauma, and burns units, where at least 10 victims were receiving treatment for varying degrees of burns and injuries.
​Firefighting units from both the Edo State Fire Service and the Federal Fire Service, alongside officers from the Nigeria Police Force and the Nigerian Army, spent hours battling the blaze and cordoning off the busy arterial road to restore public safety.
​Reactions to the incident have extended to government representatives, with Hon. Omosede Igbinedion, representing Ovia Federal Constituency, expressing condolences and promising emergency relief support to affected traders and victims.
​Investigation into the precise cause of the spill and subsequent ignition remains ongoing as authorities continue to monitor the survivors’ conditions.
