Lagosians Scoop Groundnut Oil From Fallen Tanker

Some residents of Lagos State yesterday threw caution to the winds and stormed the scene of a fallen tanker carrying 33,000 litres of groundnut oil that crashed near Abiola Garden on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway disrupting traffic flow.

As the residents scooped the oil from the ground, the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) warned them against consuming or selling the scooped oil because it had been contaminated by dirt, road pollutants and substances from drainage channels.

The agency in a statement posted on X said preliminary security reports suggested that brake failure might have caused the tanker to overturn.

According to the LASTMA general manager, Olalekan Bakare-Oki, the agency was more concerned that people were collecting the spilled oil from the road and drainage channels without knowing whether it was safe for consumption.

Bakare-Oki appealed to the residents not to take the oil home for cooking or sell it to unsuspecting buyers, warning that possible contamination posed a risk to public health.

The agency said it deployed its rescue and recovery team and two heavy-duty tow vehicles to remove the tanker and clear the road.

LASTMA said the police, Federal Road Safety Corps, Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers, Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service and Lagos State Neighbourhood Safety Agency also responded.

Meanwhile, a truck had earlier crashed at Berger Bus Stop, inward Kara Bridge, in the Ojodu area of Lagos, leaving five people seriously injured.

LASTMA explained that the accident which occurred on Tuesday involved a 40-foot HOWO truck and two commercial buses—a Mazda bus travelling between states and a Toyota Hiace bus.