Over 40 people in Liberia have been reported dead in Liberia after a tanker truck transporting petroleum products crashed and exploded near Totota on Wednesday.
The country’s chief medical officer, Francis Kateh confirmed the grim estimate to local media, acknowledging the difficulty in verifying the exact number of casualties due to the fire’s intensity.
According to local reports, the catastrophic explosion was caused by a tanker that tipped in a ditch some 80 miles away from Monrovia, the capital.
Medical personnel are reportedly conducting frantic searches for missing people, thoroughly inspecting homes.
According to the police’s initial reports, there were at least thirty injuries and fifteen confirmed deaths, many of which had burns from the fire.
The tragedy took a devastating turn when residents, unaware of the dangers, attempted to gather leaking fuel from the overturned tanker.
According to Malvin Sackor, a police officer, this desperate act triggered the explosion, adding to the mounting casualties.
An eyewitness from Totota, Aaron Massaquoi, said “people climbed all on top of the truck taking the gas, while some of them had irons hitting the tanker for it to burst for them to get gas.
“People were all around the truck and the driver of the truck told them that the gas that was spilling they could take that.
“He told them not to climb on top of the tanker and that they should stop hitting the tanker…. but some people were even using screwdrivers to put holes on the tank.”
Chioma Kalu
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