POLITICS-NIGERIA: Death Toll Rises in Ammo Dump Explosions

By Toye Olori Reprint | | Print |

Toye Olori

LAGOS, Jan 30 2002 (IPS) - The death toll in a stampede caused by bomb explosions at an ammunition dump at a military cantonment in Ikeja, a suburb of Lagos on Sunday, rose to 700 Wednesday as more bodies are still being fished out from the Oke-Afa canal by rescue workers.

Divers, joined by local volunteers, Wednesday waded through the brackish water in which residents fleeing the explosions got drowned.

“We expect to see more bodies by tomorrow when those still trapped under seaweed would have flown to the surface,” says Dayo Odunayo, a member of the rescue team.

Unofficial figures put the death toll at more than 1,000. More than 1,000 other persons, mainly children and women, have been declared missing.

Residents of the neighbourhood, who panicked and ran in different directions to escape the blasts which lasted more than three hours, were trapped in the swampy canal where in 1991, more than 50 army officers perished when their plane crashed and died of suffocation.

The impact of Sunday’s explosion is still visible everywhere within the vicinity of the adjourning Lagos suburbs of Isolo, Ajao Estate, Oshodi and Oke-Afa, where some building caved and unexploded bombs lay around. The ever-busy Oshodi market, situated near the cantonment, has become a ghost town, as traders fear more explosions.

To avoid further calamity, the police have appealed to residents to report any strange objects found around their compound.

“This is not the time to play with unexploded bombs that were dispatched to different parts of the area during the explosions,” the police said.

Defence minister, Lt-Gen. Theophilus Danjuma, who visited the scene of the blast Tuesday, also warned that though he is not an expert in explosions, with his little experience, the cantonment is not safe.

“Some of those unexploded bombs can still explode as a result of the heat from the sun or otherwise,” Danjuma said.

He urged those affected not to panic as “so many children have been seen all over Lagos who will be brought to the cantonment for identification”.

A panel, chaired by the Army Chief of staff, has started conducting a high-level inquiry into the incident. A parallel inquiry that would take into account the details of civilian casualties and destruction to lives and property would also be conducted, the minister said.

Lagos State Governor, Bola Tinubu, who accompanied President Olusegun Obasanjo on a tour of the Ikeja Cantonment on Monday, expressed shock when he saw the Ikeja General Hospital mortuary filled to the brim.

“It’s a disaster we did not anticipate. We did not anticipate this many lives would be lost. It is a disaster for this nation and Lagos State in particular,” Tinubu said.

Obasanjo, who also described the incident as a national disaster, declared Tuesday a National Day of Mourning and ordered flags flown at half-mast. Memorial services and prayers were held in churches and mosques for those who lost their lives in the blasts.

“We must do our utmost to give help and succour to the dependants of those who lost their lives,” the Nigerian president said.

Following Obasanjo’s appeal, three legislators from Lagos State on Tuesday donated 1.5 million naira (about 12,000 U.S. dollars) to the Explosion Disaster Relief Fund, set up by the government this week.

The UN Children’s Fund (UNICEF) also has set up two camps to offer relief to the victims, near the scene of the blasts.

Bandages, disinfectants, burn solutions, antibiotics and blankets have been made available to alleviate the suffering of the victims, said Batilloi Warritay, UNICEF’s Chief Information Officer.

Messages of condolence also have been pouring in from international figures and bodies, including the Vatican and the Economic Community for West African States (ECOWAS).

In a telegram to the Vatican Embassy in Abuja, the capital of Nigeria, Pope John Paul 11, is quoted as urging Nigerians to pray “for those who lost their lives, and their families”.

The fear of another explosion has spurred evacuation of the barracks and its surroundings by military personnel and residents whose homes were shattered by the flying missiles and the tremor that shook their buildings during the blasts Sunday.

Some unexploded bombs on the streets continued to explode in long intervals Tuesday, forcing schools in the vicinity to close.

The blasts also have led to rumours of a possible sabotage and plots to overthrow the government of Obasanjo. But vice-president, Abubakar Atiku has refuted the rumours.

“The blasts were an unfortunate accident. There is nothing to panic about as the government is in full control of the situation,” he told journalists in Bida, capital of the northern state of Niger.

“Judging from dividend derived within three years of democratic rule, there could be no alternative to civil governance in which justice, equity and freedom are guaranteed without restrictions,” said Atiku.