A tanker carrying 45,000 litres of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly known as petrol, overturned on Thursday at Isimi in the Epe area of Lagos State, spilling its contents onto the road.
The Lagos State Emergency Management Agency disclosed this in a statement issued by its Permanent Secretary, Olufemi Oke-Osanyintolu.
LASEMA said no death or injury was recorded in the accident.
According to the agency, the tanker, with registration number T-18212LA, overturned while attempting to manoeuvre around a stationary Ford pickup van, marked KJA-13FJ, which had reportedly developed a mechanical fault on the carriageway.
The agency explained that one of the tanker’s rear tyres slipped into a pit during the manoeuvre, causing the vehicle to overturn and fall onto the pickup van, which was loaded with animal feed.
The incident resulted in the spillage of the tanker’s highly inflammable cargo onto the roadway.
LASEMA said it received a distress call concerning the accident at about 10:19am and immediately deployed its LRT Beta Whales Team stationed in Epe to the scene.
The emergency agency activated a multi-agency response involving the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, Lagos Neighbourhood Safety Corps, Federal Road Safety Corps and the Nigeria Police Force.
The agencies secured the affected area, controlled traffic and introduced diversion measures to reduce the risk of a secondary accident.
The Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service also applied chemical foam around the overturned tanker and the surrounding area as a precaution against a possible fire outbreak.
The affected portion of the road was temporarily closed to vehicular movement while emergency operations were underway.
LASEMA said the remaining petrol in the damaged tanker was subsequently transferred to an empty tanker in a controlled operation.
Both the tanker and the pickup van were later removed from the roadway with the assistance of a private towing service and taken to Ketu Police Station.
The agency confirmed that the road had been reopened to traffic after the vehicles were cleared and the area was deemed safe.
Oke-Osanyintolu commended the emergency responders for their prompt intervention and coordination, saying their efforts helped avert what could have developed into a major disaster.
He urged motorists, particularly operators of tankers and other heavy-duty vehicles carrying combustible materials, to ensure their vehicles are mechanically sound and to exercise caution while driving.
He also advised motorists to comply with traffic regulations and urged members of the public to report emergencies and road incidents through the toll-free 767 and 112 emergency lines.