Traders and residents affected by Thursday’s petrol tanker fire at Oluku Market in Benin, Edo State, are counting their losses after the inferno destroyed shops and nearby buildings.
Recall that the fire started after a petrol tanker fell while attempting a U-turn near the market, spilling fuel onto the road and adjoining drainage channels.
Several people were feared dead, while 10 injured victims were taken to the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) for treatment.
One of the affected traders, Mrs Ebun Raheem, a clothes dealer, said she had restocked her shop just a day before the fire.
She said she had returned from buying new stock and regretted not taking her husband’s advice to postpone the trip until the weekend.
“I would have waited for the weekend if I knew. My husband was telling me to wait and go shopping for new stock on Saturday,” she said.
Raheem put her losses at more than N3 million.
Another trader, who pleaded anonymity, said he had recently taken a substantial loan from OPay to invest in his business, with repayment due to begin in November. He lamented that the fire had destroyed his business before he could start paying back the loan.
“This is just like a bad dream right now. How do I start paying this loan back with this disaster?” he said.
Alhaji Kazeem Hassan, a landlord whose building was also affected, said many of his tenants had recently paid their rent for the coming year, leaving him worried about how they would cope with the losses.
“You see, my tenants just paid their rent for next year. This is a very terrible thing,” he said.
Hassan urged the Edo Government to repair the road and provide assistance to those affected by the fire.
“Please, let the Edo Government do something about this bad road and come to help all these people affected by the fire,” he said.
Preye Bedford, the Edo Sector Commander of Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) confirmed that 10 people were injured, with eight sustaining severe injuries and two others suffering less severe injuries.
As of the time of filing this report, the number of people who died in the incident remained unconfirmed, with no updated casualty figures provided by the FRSC.
Okpebholo vows to rebuild burnt Oluku market, support victims
Meanwhile, Governor Monday Okpebholo of Edo has pledged to rebuild the Oluku Market, which was destroyed by fire on Thursday, and support traders who lost their shops and goods in the disaster.
Okpebholo gave the assurance on Friday in Benin while addressing the affected traders shortly after assessing the extent of damage at the market.
Oluku Market, situated along the Benin-Lagos Road in Ovia North-East Local Government Area of the state, was affected by the inferno arising from a fuel tanker explosion, as some residents were scooping fuel.
The governor expressed sadness over the incident, saying that such situations could have been avoided.
He said the First Lady, Sen. Oluremi Tinubu, had sent her condolences to the victims and families of those who lost their lives.
“I spoke to the First Lady this morning, and she expressed her sadness over the incident,” he said.
The governor urged residents to stay away from fire disaster scenes involving petrol to avoid further casualties.
Okpebholo also visited the burns and plastic ward of the Accident and Emergency Department of the University of Benin Teaching Hospital (UBTH) to see some of the victims receiving treatment.
The governor, while addressing parents of the victims admitted to the hospital, stressed that the Federal Government had been spending huge amounts of money on advertisements warning against the dangers of scooping fuel.
He, however, frowned at the owner of the affected truck, who had immediately brought in another truck to transfer the contents without taking any precautionary measures.
He assured the traders that his administration would not abandon them, promising to restore their livelihoods through a rebuilding and support exercise.
Earlier, the market’s Secretary, Mrs Blessing Itoje appealed to the governor to come to their aid, saying that no trader had the opportunity to salvage anything from the inferno.
“We couldn’t even pick anything; everything burnt to ashes. Some of us are widows, and we use our meagre earnings to care for our families.
“Some of the traders were admitted to hospital due to the shock; some are on oxygen. Please, our father, some of us are servicing loans as I speak,” she said.
Another trader, Mrs Julie Ologbosere, also appealed to the governor to support the traders, saying they had been left with nothing.
The UBTH Chief Medical Director (CMD), Prof. Idia Ize-Iyamu, conducted the governor, Sen. Adams Oshiomhole, Sen. Matthew Urhoghide, alongside Edo Deputy Governor, Dennis Idahosa, around the hospital facilities to see the victims.