By Ayo Kehinde
An early morning massive fire outbreak from a vandalized Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, pipeline in an area in Abule-Egba axis of Lagos State has destroyed shops, cars, buses, houses and markets on the route of the pipeline.
The pipeline explosion, which started at 1:am on Wednesday was triggered off by the activities of oil thieves at a vandalized pipe of the oil corporation located at Arowolo street, off Awori Bus stop on the Lagos Abeokuta Expressway, a walking distance from the overhead Jubilee Bridge recently commissioned by the Lagos State governor, Akinwumi Ambode.
According to an eyewitness, Mr Jide Ayobolu, a media consultant who lives within the area, some illegal oil traders vandalized the pipeline at the Arowolo street which led to an explosion that consumed all the landed and movable property on its route stretching over a 10 kilometer radius.
From the Arowolo street, off Awori Bus Stop in Abule-Egba, on the Lagos-Abeokuta Expressway right up to Charity Road in Oko-Oba and abattoir on the Old Ota Road, also in the Agege area, every object on fiery path were wrecked. As at 9:am, carcasses of burnt vehicles, shops, markets, houses dotted the affected streets.
Many walked helplessly about trading blames and curses, while others sympathized with those who suffered lose and wearing nosegay loitering about. A few moved about taking shots of the wreckage with their phones.
No life was lost. Except for a widow with three children, 38 year- old Mrs Samuel who suffered burns in the elbow and back of the right palm, no person has come forward to explain a personal harm. The affected shops, vehicles and houses fall within two Local Community Development Areas, LCDAs, in the state, namely, Abule-Egba/Okeode and Ifako-Ijaye.
Firefighters battling the smoldering fire: All photographs by THISAGE
Speaking to THISAGE, Ayobolu said: “The illegal oil traders vandalized an NNPC pipeline, where some oil containers are. They always pretend they are doing legitimate business there. Unfortunately yesterday early morning, the thing exploded.”
In his own account, Mr Rasheed Makinde, a lawmaker with the Lagos House of Assembly, speaking at the scene of the incident at 9:am, said: “What we were told is that they had siphoned the fuel but in the process of evacuation, the fuel spilled into the nearby gutter and an explosion occurred. It was abattoir that the fire started and ran down here. (Arowolo and adjoining streets).”
Makinde represents Ifako-Ijaiye Constituency II at the Lagos State House of Assembly.
Investigation shows that the oil thieves had been siphoning fuel at the spot on Arowolo street where a dugout, shielded by a 2 by 1meter aluminum container, meets a vandalized oil pipeline from where the siphoning of fuel is regularly done, mostly in the wee hours of the day when the neighbourhood is in deep slumber. Men and women of the NSCDC cordoned off the container.
Curiously, it was from this area that a similar explosion occurred in 2006 and killing almost 900 persons and destroying property in the millions.
The authorities appeared lax in their duties. According to Ayobolo, the Police even came to the area recently to seal up a club, called Social Club.
He said: “If you go to Social Club, a walking distance from this street (Arowolo), you won’t see any activity there because the police sealed up the place on account of the same illegal activity, siphoning of fuel. Nothing else”
Residents said the police have been double faced in their coverage of the area. They allege that few hours away from disaster, the police came around at about 11 p:m and chased people to their beds.
Mr Tosin Oluwatoye, a pastor and community leader told THISAGE: “As at yesterday night, around 11p:m, the policemen came and started chasing people to go and sleep. We did not know what has happened now was the reason. It means they knew something illegal was going on.”
Mrs Samuel, showing off her burnt elbow and palm
A police inspector, Mr Peters Samuel, faulted the allegation of complicity by the police. Mr Samuel who said he had been part of the regular police patrol team in the area told THISAGE that police increased presence in the area was due to the request of Baale Awopegba of Ilupeju Tutun, a suburb.
He said: “The Baale called our CP Edgar Imohinmi that residential robbery had increased in the area which needed constant surveillance. He particularly requested we use the siren always to scare the criminals which we do even on Okada,(motorcycles) apart from the patrol vans. That is what we have been doing everyday and there has been respite from criminals in the area.”
When THISAGE called on the Baale palace, he was said to be indisposed. But another Baale within the area corroborated Inspector Peters views.
The Baale is Jonathan Akintunde Bakare Baale of Abule-Egba Tutun.
He told THISAGE: “ I am in a better position to answer your questions even though I am not the Baale covering the area. The Baale in charge is old and sick. The problem in that area, particularly Arowolo is vandalization and insecurity. Because of that we alerted the police to patrol the area. And we told them to blow siren when they are coming. The DPO made up realize that the siren would help them in the prevention of crime and make sure many of the criminals are destabilize. Even during our stakeholders meeting with the Commissioner, the surveillance is part of the community policing we talked about. How can people say the police are colluding with criminals? That Arowolo Street has been a black spot for long where hoodlums smoke hemp. To the best of my knowledge, the allegation is a rumour. I attend stakeholders meeting and where we identify black spots to police and even asked them to use motorcycles to ease their mobility”
“In 2006, the same explosion we are witnessing today happened and so many persons lost their lives. So it is a recurring decimal.” Ayobolu said. That year, people woke in the morning to find an exposed, vandalized pipeline gushing fuel and in the ensuing scramble set off an explosion that claimed about 900 lives. This time, it is the inanimate objects on the route of an inflamed pipeline that were affected.
What is to be done?
The lawmaker, Makinde wants combined action between the security and government:
Makinde
He said: “ What we need around here is thorough surveillance by the police, the army and the civil defense working in a joint task force operation within this area up to the rail line at Fagba and the Abeokuta Expressway. If you go into the NNPC pipeline, you have several holes where the bunkers are siphoning petrol.
“The community and the security agencies have to work together, we cannot continue to loose lives and property in this area. And I want to implore the Ministries of Physical Planning, the Environment and Energy to define this place properly. We do not want shop or kiosks in this area. I want to implore the task force put in place by the Commissioner of Police, Mr Imonhimi to come and chase away those illegal persons in this area. Our people should also be vigilant and report any suspicious activity in their neighbourhood call emergency number 767116. “
Ayobolu said: “What government ought to have done was to demolish all the houses within this axis to avoid repetition, then put National Security and Civil Defense outfit here. And people living close to this area cannot claim they do not know those who own the shop where the illegal activities goes on every day”.
Oluwatoye is unimpressed by more talk, no action from the authorities.
“I was privy to what happened twelve years ago when a similar pipeline explosion happened here at about 900 persons were burnt to death and property worth millions of Naira destroyed,” he said, adding, “ I heard the honourable member in the Lagos House of Assembly talked about the involvement of the local people in securing the area, but I ask, what would the local people do.
“ As far as I am concerned the Police Commissioner has to get involved and find out what is going on in the stations in all the communities in Lagos state. A petty trader that used to trade near the oil container was chased out by the by the oil thieves. So there are big persons here who know those involved and they are working with the high and mighty”
For Baale Bakare, a retired fire and security officer, the people have to be safety conscious and stop activities like welding, storing heavy containers on or near the route of the pipelines.
For the Commssioner of Police, Edgar Imonhimi who came in with a team in the afternoon, more coordination of security activities among the various arms of security agencies and safety consciousness of the people would go a long way. On seeing the injured Mr Samuel, he ordered his men to take her to the hospital. Officials of the army, the NSCDC, Neighbourhood Watch, Fire Services, Red Cross were seen jointly performing their respective duties to rescue what could still be salvaged from the smoldering fire.
