LASTMA averts midnight inferno as PMS tanker overturns on Lekki–Epe Expressway

Stanley Ihedigbo

Swift intervention by the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) prevented what could have turned into a midnight inferno after a fully laden petrol tanker overturned at Awoyaya along the inward Lekki–Epe Expressway.

According to the Director, Public Affairs and Enlightenment Department of LASTMA, Adebayo Taofiq, the incident, which transpired at approximately 2:00 a.m., involved a lone articulated tanker conveying a significant volume of PMS that reportedly lost vehicular equilibrium and upturned while navigating the inbound corridor of the high-traffic Lekki–Epe Expressway.

Considering the volatile and highly combustible nature of its cargo, coupled with the strategic importance of the transport corridor, the occurrence constituted an imminent and grave danger to human lives, public and private property, as well as the immediate environment.

Upon receipt of a distress alert, LASTMA’s Rescue and Recovery Unit was expeditiously deployed to the scene, where operatives promptly demarcated a secure safety perimeter, enforced comprehensive traffic control measures and initiated preparatory recovery procedures.

This swift and coordinated intervention effectively curtailed the activities of fuel scoopers, prevented secondary collisions, and decisively forestalled what could have degenerated into a catastrophic fire disaster.

In parallel response, the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service was promptly mobilised to the location and immediately activated stringent fire prevention and containment protocols, including sustained surveillance to eliminate any risk of ignition or escalation.

With all critical safety measures firmly entrenched and no casualty recorded, emergency responders temporarily suspended vehicular movement within the affected axis before cautiously restoring traffic flow, thereby ensuring public safety and averting a potentially calamitous outcome.

Transloading operation into another empty 33,000-litre tanker was meticulously executed under stringent supervision and exhaustive scrutiny by emergency response personnel

The Agency once again admonishes tanker and articulated vehicle operators to exercise the highest degree of caution, ensure rigorous vehicular maintenance and adhere strictly to prescribed safety regulations, particularly during nocturnal operations, in order to protect lives and safeguard critical public infrastructure.

Commending the seamless inter-agency collaboration at the accident scene, the Special Adviser to the Governor on Transportation, Hon. Sola Giwa, lauded the prompt and professional response of LASTMA operatives and the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service.