Explosion Rocks Abule Ado In Festac, Houses Destroyed (Video)

Many houses were on Sunday morning, destroyed after a massive explosion rocked Abule Ado in Festac town area of Lagos State, Nigeria’s commercial city.

Naija News reports that the pipeline explosion which happened at about 8: 50 am, was said to have affected residents of Surulere, Ijegun, Ikotun, Egbeda, Abule Ado, Okota, Isheri Olofin, FESTAC, Satellite Town.

Giving an account of the incident, a FESTAC resident told TheCable over the phone that: “The roof of our building is off and a nearby school is on fire.”

On the other hand, a resident of Egbeda said: “I was relaxing in the sitting room after returning from the church. Suddenly, I heard a loud bang and the doors shook like they were going to fall.”

Although the cause of the explosion is yet to be known, an official of the Lagos State Emergency Management Authority (LASEMA) said a pipeline exploded around Abule Ado in Amuwo Odofin local government area of the state.

The Federal Fire Service tweeted that its men are making efforts to get information on the incident.

“We are in touch with our men in Fire Stations around Badagry and Festac, we are trying to gather more information as regards the reported explosion in Lagos State, Nigeria. We are on it,” the service tweeted.

We are in touch with our men in Fire Stations around Badagry and Festac, we are trying to gather more information as regards the reported explosion in Lagos State, Nigeria. We are on it.

— Federal Fire Service (@Fedfireng) March 15, 2020

Meanwhile, the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) says the explosion was not caused by a disruption of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) oil pipeline.

The Acting Coordinator, Lagos Territorial Office, NEMA, Ibrahim Farinloye, made the clarification in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.

Farinloye said that contrary to information earlier put out on the social media, the explosion was unconnected to pipeline vandalism.

His words: “From the information given by officials of the Lagos State Fire Service who are currently on ground, the implosion is not connected to pipeline but might have occurred in a factory located in the Abule Ado area.

“Emergency responders are on ground while others are still on their way to the scene. The situation is under control and we hope to get more information soon to ascertain its cause,” he said.

"@9JAGUN: @Gidi_Traffic explosion around area of Festac with oil pipelines this morning by 8:50am. It’s suspected to have been caused by vandals. Houses shook. Windows broke. Some people were injured from falling debris. pic.twitter.com/4AFaKrPfr8

— GIDITRAFFIC (@Gidi_Traffic) March 15, 2020

Farinloye said the NNPC had shutdown the pipeline passing through the area as a precautionary measure after the oil company was notified of the incident.

The NEMA Acting Coordinator also confirmed that several buildings were affected by the explosion which was heard several kilometers away in many parts of the state including Amuwo Odofin, Ijegun and Agege.