Tragedy was averted over the weekend at One-Man Village, a suburb of Abuja, as good Samaritans pushed away a Peugeot J5 van which caught fire while queueing to buy petrol at AA Rano mega fuel station there.
At the end of the day, the Peugeot J5 van and a Honda Accord car parked in an adjoining plot of land were burnt to ashes.
According to eyewitnesses, trouble began shortly after a Plateau State- bound J5 van lined up to buy petrol at the fuel station. Other commuters immediately noticed smoke billowing from the front of the van.
Narrated one eyewitness, “We panicked when we saw smoke coming out of the engine compartment of the J5 bus. My car was two or three vehicles from the J5 bus.
“In the confusion that ensued, some car owners furiously tried to drive out of the fuel station, causing more confusion. It was at that point that the manager of the AR Rano fuel station suggested that we push out the J5 bus, ostensibly to avert more damage.
“No sooner had we pushed out the J5 than we realized that the driver, afraid that the bus could explode any moment, jumped of the bus. The bus, now out of control, rolled and rammed into a Honda Accord car parked in the adjoining compound. The impact caused both vehicles to explode,” he said.
Another eyewitness explained that the fireball created by the explosions were do big that attempts by workers of the neighbouring Threshold gas plant to it out the fire were unsuccessful.
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“The people at AA Rano tried to play smart by trying to wash their hands off the unfortunate incident. They forget that had that J5 bus not been pushed out of their fuel station, it would caused considerable damage running into hundreds of millons of Naira, that is, if lives wouldn’t have been lost,” stated the eyewitness.
He, however, added, “But from the good things I’ve heard about Alhaji Auwalu Abdullahi Rano, especially his good heart and philanthropy, I have little doubt that AA Rano chairman would order that the owner of the Honda Accord car be adequately compensated. I heard he is a very considerate businessman.”