- The Lagos state government is taking a drastic decision following the recent tanker fire accident on Otedola Bridge
- The decision was reached with stakeholders in the petroleum sector in the state
- The government says henceforth, all articulated vehicles must obtained certification from the state
Following the tragic tanker explosion on Otedola Bridge along Lagos-Ibadan expressway which claimed lives and property, the Lagos state government has restricted movement of fuel tankers to designated trailer routes.
The decision was announced on Sunday, July 1, by the state government which also said it was now mandatory for all articulated trucks coming into Lagos to obtain the transportation ministry’s ‘road worthiness certificate’ at any of the designated centres within the next 30 days.
Addressing a joint press briefing at the Bagauda Kaltho Press Centre in Alausa after meeting with all the relevant stakeholders including Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG), Association of Maritime Truck Owners (AMATO), Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD), National Association of Transport Operators (NATO), Container Truck Owners Association of Nigeria, among others, the state’s commissioner for transportation, Ladi Lawanson, said the decision became necessary following preliminary investigations into the incident which revealed a combination of vehicular defect and human errors.
“As an immediate response to the latest incident, the Lagos state government hereby announces the following measures: fuel tankers are hereby directed to ply the designated trailer route, that is, Apapa-Oworonshoki expressway via Ogudu to Lagos-Ibadan Expressway.
“All Tankers and containers coming into Lagos state from henceforth are directed to obtain the ministry of transportation certificate of road worthiness at any of or centres within the next 30 days, while new centres along the Lagos-Ibadan expressway will be established to quickly to cope with the expected demand for this service,” Lawanson said in a statement made available to NAIJ.com.
He listed the 10 centres currently available to process the applications to include Berger, Ojodu; Odogunyan, Ikorodu; Agric/Ishawo Road, Ikorodu; Worksyard, PWD, Shogunle; NCI, Gbagada; VIS Yard, Oko-Afo, Badagry; VIS Yard, Ayobo-Ipaja; Test Centre, Badagry; VIS Yard, Epe; and VIS Yard, Oko-Oba Abattoir.
Lawanson said preliminary investigation revealed that the affected tanker which exploded was registered in Nasarawa local government, Kano state with registration number NSR 888 YC, and had changed ownership 13 times since purchase.
“It (the tanker) was manufactured in 1999 by Mack Trucks Inc at its assembly plant in Winnsboro, United States. This truck was designed as a 14,959kg (approximately 15 ton) drilling rig with low bed, but it was converted in Nigeria from a drilling rig to fuel tank carrier to carry 30 tonnes.
“From this preliminary investigation, the truck should not have been loaded to the weight of 30 tonnes, which is twice its pulling capacity,” the commissioner said, adding that further investigation into the current ownership of the tanker and other related details were progressing.
The commissioner said having critically examined the issue especially considering the fact that imported petroleum products are pumped from import jetties at Atlas Cove through pipelines to Ejigbo Depots in Lagos, Mosimi (Ogun), Ibadan (Oyo), Ilorin (Kwara) and Ore (Ondo), and due to pipeline vandalism, any restriction of such would undermine supplies and threaten the wellbeing of the Nigerian economy since there is high demand for petroleum products across the country.
“This position has also been canvassed by the authorities in charge of the distribution of petroleum products in the consultations which followed the incident and at a time of great expectations for our economy to fully bounce back from recession, we believe that ensuring unhindered supply of petroleum products is indeed a patriotic contribution by Lagos state to the nation’s economic survival,” Lawanson said.
He further disclosed that the state government was already exploring alternative modes of transportation of petroleum products to separate passenger traffic from cargo movements within the metropolis in the interest of the public safety and order.
He also said that government, in partnership with all the stakeholders, would set up joint-enforcement of the operating laws, while barriers would be installed on bridges in Lagos to prevent articulated trucks including Ojuelegba, Mobolaji Bank Anthony, Ekodeso, Abule-Egba, Lekki-Ajah, among others.
The commissioner for special duties and intergovernmental relations, Seye Oladejo, also gave insight into the accident that occurred on the Otedola Bridge saying out of the four injured persons that were taken away from the scene, one died.
He said government was taking full responsibility for the treatment of others.
He denied allegations that some victims were rejected by the general hospital in Surulere, saying that the victims were only taken to LASUTH, Ikeja and Burns and Trauma Centre in Gbagada.
“When you have such incident of that magnitude, as part of our training as emergency responders, we need to be very careful the way we handle our communication so that we don’t raise unnecessary alarm.
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“It is important for members of the public to remain calm while we get all our acts together, otherwise we would also be asking for another emergency.
“Altogether, nine people passed on at the incident and they were all burnt beyond recognition. We have set up a helpline at LASEMA to try and open a communication channel with members of the public and with family members of the victims.
“It is important that DNA is conducted otherwise we would end up giving the wrong bodies to some families to go and inter and that would become another issue entirely,” he said.
NAIJ.com earlier reported that Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Friday evening, June 29, visited Lagos state, to convey the condolences of the federal government on the tragic tanker explosion at the Otedola Bridge.
It gathered that Osinbajo, who spoke shortly after a closed door meeting with Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, said the federal government was deeply saddened by the incident.
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Source: Naija.ng
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