Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, has described as unfortunate the fire incident caused by a tanker conveying Premium Motor Spirit otherwise called petrol which burnt human beings, commuters and vehicles beyond recognition.
The incident, which resulted in the death of five people and burning down of 70 cars occurred between Indorama Gate and Aleto Bridge on the popular and ever-busy Eleme section of the East-West Road undergoing major reconstruction by the Federal Government on Friday night.
Fubara expressed sadness at the gory sights that he saw when he visited the scene of the incident, accompanied by the state Commissioner of Police, Olatunji Disu, and the Commissioner for Energy and Natural Resources, Mr Uchechukwu Nwafor, on Saturday morning.
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In a statement issued by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Nelson Chukwudi, and sent to newsmen, Fubara noted that the accident could have been avoided if the motorists were cautious.
Fubara explained that he got a call from the Managing Director of Indorama Petrochemical and Fertilizer Company Limited in Eleme Local Government Area, informing him of the incident.
The governor said he immediately routed a call to the security agencies and instructed that they visit the scene to take charge of the security of the area to avoid escalation of the situation.
According to him, “We are here to see for ourselves and get first-hand information of the incident of what happened yesterday night.
“About 7.30 – 8 pm, we got information on the gravity of the incident. I was told that it was caused by a tanker vehicle that was conveying Premium Motor Spirit.
“I got the information through the MD of Indorama, and I immediately alerted the security agencies to make sure they took control of the security situation in the area.
“And from what we are seeing this morning, it was not a pleasant case. We recorded a huge number of vehicles destroyed and lives lost.”
Fubara explained that he had already requested the relevant government agencies to provide him with a detailed account of their findings to enable the State Government to take appropriate decisions and actions to significantly remedy the situation and reduce the negative effects on the affected people.
“I have already asked the relevant agencies to give us a full brief so that we can come into the situation fully by seeing to how much we can support the bereaved families, and also cushion the effect of the losses, which I believe, is no fault of a good number of them.
Site of the tanker explosion in Port Harcourt that claims lives and property
“We all know the situation of this road. It is really unfortunate. Most of our people, when plying this road, should ply it with caution.
