Heartbreak and Grief: Families Mourn Victims of Enugu Tanker Fire Tragedy
Tears and anguish filled the air on Sunday as families gathered to mourn the victims of the tragic petrol tanker fire that claimed 18 lives in Enugu on Saturday. Relatives flocked to hospitals and the accident scene along the Ugwu Onyeama section of the Enugu-Onitsha Expressway, where they identified vehicles that had carried their loved ones before the disaster.
By early morning, crowds from Enugu, Onitsha, Awka, and nearby areas converged at the site of the tragedy and at hospitals, including the Enugu State University Teaching Hospital (Park Lane) and the National Orthopaedic Hospital, where survivors were being treated. At Park Lane Hospital, a staff member revealed that most of the injured had been transferred to the orthopedic hospital due to the severity of their burns.
“They were first rushed here at Park Lane but because of the severity of their burns, they were transferred to the National Orthopaedic Hospital, Enugu because we couldn’t handle it,” said the hospital official.
Newsmen were denied access to the wards at the orthopedic hospital where the survivors were receiving treatment. Meanwhile, at the accident scene, grieving relatives broke down as they recognized the burnt remains of vehicles.
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One distraught individual pointed at a charred Lexus SUV and said, “My in-law, who just returned from abroad, was among the five persons that were burnt inside this Lexus.” Another mourned the loss of his entire family, crying, “The worst has happened. My world has turned upside down. My mother, all of them, including Izu, Chioma, and Nnamdi have been burnt to death.”
Efforts to reach Franklin Agbakoba Onyekwere, the sector commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps, for an update on the casualty figures were unsuccessful. Although he initially requested a follow-up call after two hours, his line was unreachable after three hours at the time of this report.
