Oil pipeline explodes, kills over 200 in Nigeria

Oil gushing from a ruptured Nigeria pipeline caught fire on Friday as villagers scavenged for the free fuel, sparking an inferno that killed up to 200 people and left charred bodies scattered around the site.

Oil gushing from a ruptured Nigeria pipeline caught fire on Friday as villagers scavenged for the free fuel, sparking an inferno that killed up to 200 people and left charred bodies scattered around the site.

Grim-faced rescue workers swung corpses into a mass grave as dozens of other scorched bodies awaited collection next to the pipeline. It appeared some victims whose bodies lay further away had tried to flee the unfolding disaster only to be overtaken by flames spreading across the fuel slick.

Police and rescue workers said the villagers had been collecting the gushing fuel outside Ilado, 45 km east of Lagos when the fuel ignited, killing dozens. “Between 150 and 200 people died,” Lagos Police Commissioner Emmanuel Adebayo told reporters. The Red Cross had said it was treating survivors, but no live victims were seen. It wasn’t known what started the fuel ablaze.

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The Red Cross said it had workers helping survivors. Red Cross spokeswoman Okon Umoh said many of the bodies had fallen into the water.

The impoverished people of Africa’s oil giant often tap intopipelines, seeking fuel for cooking or resale on the black market. The highly volatile petroleum can ignite, incinerating those collecting it.

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