Red Cross: 100 killed in Nigeria pipeline fire
Pastor Dale Morgan
Red Cross: 100 killed in Nigeria pipeline fire*
* Story Highlights
* Construction equipment ruptures petroleum pipeline on outskirts of
Lagos
* Fire spreads to nearby homes and school
* At least 20 injuries reported, Red Cross says
LAGOS, Nigeria (AP) -- Flames from a ruptured fuel pipeline swept
through homes and a school in a Nigerian village Thursday, killing about
100 people and injuring 20 others, a Red Cross official said.
A crew shoots water on flames caused by a petroleum pipeline fire near
Lagos, Nigeria, on Thursday.
Road construction machinery pierced a pipe carrying refined fuel through
a village on the distant outskirts of the main city of Lagos, spreading
flames into the surrounding area, Nigerian Red Cross disaster
coordinator Suleman Maikubi said.
Many children fled the school before it was completely engulfed in fire,
and Red Cross officials were working to reunite children with parents
who rushed to the scene.
Maikubi said it was unclear how many children were among the roughly 100
people killed. About 20 people were injured and taken to a hospital for
treatment, but fire-control teams were on the scene and bringing the
blaze under control, he said.
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Pipeline fires are common in Nigeria. More than 400 people died in two
similar pipeline explosions in Lagos in 2006, and at least 40 died in
December.
Authorities frequently blame the disasters on criminal gangs who break
into the pipelines to siphon fuel for sale, attracting crowds of people
who come in their wake to scavenge for fuel.