The Niger State Emergency Management Agency has confirmed that seven people lost their lives and one person was injured in a tanker explosion at Karamin Rami village in Mashegu Local Government Area of the state.
NSEMA’s Director General, Alhaji Abdullahi Baba-Arah, disclosed this in a statement on Friday in Minna. He explained that the explosion happened on March 4, 2025, at about 6:30 p.m.
According to him, the incident occurred when a tanker truck, while trying to manoeuvre on a bad road without shoulders, overturned and spilt its content — Premium Motor Spirit — into a nearby stream.
“The PMS came into contact with a water pump used by dry-season farmers on their rice fields, igniting a fire that spread back to the tanker, causing an explosion,” Baba-Arah said.
He added that the fire extended to farmlands through the contaminated stream water, burning some farmers and destroying rice fields, fruit crops, and vegetation.
The victims of the tragic incident were identified as Rafiatu Sahabi, Ramlat Shehu, Rashida Abdullahi Raliya, Abdulrahman, Zainab Ahmed, Zuwaira Idrisu, and Maryam Nura.
Baba-Arah also confirmed that the injured victim, Maimuna Isah, is currently receiving treatment at the Saho Rami Primary Health Care Centre.
The NSEMA DG expressed sadness over the incident and urged road users, especially tanker drivers, to exercise extreme caution when plying bad roads to avoid similar tragedies.
