WHAT A GREAT CATASTROPHIC XMAS FOR SOME IN NNEWI

As the whole world celebrate Christmas today, Nnewi, a town in Anambra State was struck with disaster when Inter Corp Oil limited aChikason Gas plant, exploded all of a sudden at around 11 am yesterday killing all customers who went to refill their gas cylinders at the plant and many others wounded.

According to a source, the fire started when a tanker was discharging its content the same time some customers were also refilling their cylinders, and because the tanker did not initially wait for an appropriate cooling period, an explosion occurred which affected not only the customers were burnt to ashes but the neighbours and passersby were also affected while many properties were damaged.

A survivor, Ikechukwu, who recount his ordeal said, “My mother was preparing pepper we wanted to use to cook tomorrow after she returned from the market, the next thing we heard was the explosion that rocked the entire vicinity.I ran for my life and escaped with minor injury but my mother was not lucky. She was not as fast as myself and when the fire subsided a little bit, the next thing I saw was her dead body. Look at the chicken we planned to kill tomorrow for Christmas. A similar thing happened at another residence where a woman and her daughter were lucky to remain alive after suffering some degrees of burn.”

Prof Peter Katchy the Vice chairman of Anambra state Red Cross pointed out that the situation would have been worse if the affected gas plant was situated in thickly populated areas and that the presence of many filling stations in residential areas in the state is worrisome.

Also pointed out that the Red Cross and the Anambra State Emergency Management Agency, would declare war on owners of filling stations sited at residential areas in the new year.

The charred bodies of the victims and other badly affected burnt persons in the vicinity of the gas plant were taken to Nnamdi Azikwe University Teaching Hospital, NAUTH, Nnewi.
More photos after the cut.