Gas Cylinder Explosion Injures 17 in Rivers State
A gas cylinder explosion in Oraszi, Obio-Akpor Local Government Area of Rivers State, has left 17 people with varying degrees of skin lacerations. The incident occurred on Saturday when the cylinder was being refilled at a roadside shop.
Witnesses reported that the fire from the explosion spread quickly, engulfing nearby shops and destroying goods displayed by business owners in the vicinity.
A local source revealed that most of the victims were passersby who happened to be close to the gas refilling shop at the time of the explosion. All the injured were promptly taken to the Emergency Unit of the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital for urgent medical attention.
In a separate incident, a fatal car crash on Friday night in the Elelenwo area of Port Harcourt, Rivers State, claimed two lives and left one person critically injured.
According to a source at the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital (RSUTH), where the victims were taken, three individuals involved in the accident were brought in by operatives of the Rivers State Police Command.
The source stated that two of the victims were already lifeless on arrival, while the third, a woman, remains in the hospital’s Intensive Care Unit, fighting for her life.
A police officer who was part of the team that brought the victims, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the crash involved a Toyota Corolla. The victims were reportedly returning to Port Harcourt from the Eleme axis late Friday night when the vehicle collided with a stationary truck.
The officer explained that the two passengers seated in the front were found dead beneath the truck, while the woman in the back seat survived but was critically injured.