Residents of Abule-Ado in Amuwo-Odofin Local Government Area, Lagos State and its surroundings are counting their losses even as hundreds have been rendered homeless and jobless following tremor-like explosion that rocked the place on Sunday morning.
In what appeared like a gas explosion, hundreds of buildings that dot the entire Abule-Ado were destroyed. While some went up in flames, others had their roofs squeezed, shrunk and broken in bits with parts of the buildings caving in.
However, residents have refused to accept claims in some quarters that it was a gas explosion. They said it was a clear case of a bomb explosion, but who planted the bomb remained unknown as at the time of this report.
A resident who identified herself as Mama Divine buttressed residents’ assumption with information they got from soldiers guarding the pipeline as well as the effect of the explosion.
She said: “My brother, that is a bomb explosion. My street is very far from the scene of the explosion but all the storey buildings on that street lost their PVCs ceilings to the explosion. The whole buildings shook and their PVCs all fell off.
“Again, according the security personnel who were guarding the pipeline, the thing came like a rocket and hit the pipeline and the next thing was that smoke starting billowing before the deafening sound, which was followed by the destruction.”
Another resident, Mr Mike corroborated Mama Divine’s assertion, insisting that the perpetrators must have targeted the Lagos Trade Fair Complex, which is only separated from Abule-Ado by a fence, or the Bethlehem College, owned by the Catholic Church.
“The Bethlehem College was badly affected, with many boarding students sustaining injuries. In fact, nobody can say the exact number of persons that died at the college, but information so far indicates that a Reverend Sister is still missing since the explosion occurred. Her phone is ringing but she is not taking her calls and nobody has seen her. Another sister, a female worker at the college was roasted beyond recognition.
“Many of the students are currently in different nearby hospitals receiving treatments, while so many others are yet to be found. That’s why I said that nobody can give accurate casualty figure at the college for now,” Mike said.
There is also an unconfirmed report from some residents that the principal of the college is dead. While some attributed the principal’s death to shock, others said she might have died of suffocation from the thick smoke that engulfed the school.