A tanker fire along the Abeokuta–Sagamu Expressway in Ogun State on Friday left one woman injured and destroyed three vehicles, the Ogun State Traffic Compliance and Enforcement Agency (TRACE) has confirmed.
The incident occurred around 1 a.m. when a 33,000-litre fuel tanker overturned due to excessive speeding and spilled its contents, igniting a fire that quickly spread to nearby vehicles.
TRACE spokesperson Babatunde Akinbiyi said the tanker lost control along the Abeokuta–Kobape–Siun–Sagamu stretch of the expressway. The flames engulfed a truck, a towing vehicle, and damaged power infrastructure, including a PHCN cable that supplies electricity to Mowe and surrounding areas.
Emergency responders from TRACE, the Federal Road Safety Corps, the police, and fire services from Ogun State and Nestlé PLC battled the blaze and later began decantation efforts to clear residual fuel.
In a later update, Akinbiyi confirmed that the fire spread to a roadside shanty, where a woman sustained minor injuries. He added that electric poles and solar light installations along the road were also destroyed.
“The damages have been ascertained. Nobody died in the fire. A woman who was sitting in a shanty along the road sustained minor injuries after the fire spread to the shanty. Also, three vehicles, including the tanker, a towing vehicle, and a truck, were affected,” Akinbiyi said.
He clarified that no occupants of the affected vehicles were trapped or injured in the fire.
Although Friday’s incident ended without fatalities, tanker accidents in Nigeria frequently result in casualties. In October 2024, a tanker fire along the Ibafo section of the Lagos–Ibadan Expressway killed one person and destroyed multiple vehicles and goods.
In July 2025, another petrol tanker explosion in Ibadan, caused by brake failure, also destroyed vehicles, though casualties were not widely confirmed.