Ibadan Explosion: FG Should Get Tough With Illegal Immigrants, Say Residents

In the aftermath of the Tuesday explosion in Ibadan, residents of the city in Oyo State are urging for stringent measures to be taken against illegal migrants.

Tragedy struck on Tuesday night in Ibadan after an explosion rocked the Ibadan metropolis in Oyo State, leaving many feared dead and scores injured.

The blast which happened around 8pm caused serious panic in the ancient city as residents ran helter-skelter with a thick dark smoke covering the atmosphere.

It was gathered that the explosion occurred at Adeyi Avenue, Bodija Estat area of the state capital.

Among the affected areas were a section of the Governor’s Office, Secretariat, Oyo State House of Assembly, the residence of the former Attorney General and Minister of Justice, Chief Bola Ige, some buildings at Ologuneru, Apete, New Garage, Bashorun, Akobo, Sango and Eleyele.

Glass windows, doors, and ceilings were shattered in the affected areas.

Although the casualties of the incident are yet to be ascertained, Governor Seyi Makinde, however, noted that two people died while 77 were injured and hospitalised.

He said preliminary investigations by security agencies revealed that the explosion was caused by explosive devices stored by illegal miners.

Meanwhile, in a video seen by The PUNCH, a white pickup van with the inscription Bodija Patrol van was seen conveying what was suspected to be the dead bodies of some of the victims after the explosion.

The PUNCH correspondent also reported that no fewer than 10 bodies were recovered from the site and taken away in ambulances.

Also seen at the supposed site of the explosion was a mangled body as the sympathisers around the victim lamented the absence of police and emergency responders.

Speaking to journalists on the explosion, a resident in Adeyi, Bodija, where the incident happened, Taiwo Salami, said, “Many have died. We saw corpses all over the street last night. It just has to stop. Not only in Ibadan, in Niger, in Sokoto, in Abuja, everywhere.

“There is chaos and disorder in this country. This is not the country everybody wants to live in. This is not the country of our dreams. It’s just ridiculous. Where do people start from? Lives have been lost. Can they be gained back? They cannot. Everybody woke up yesterday, thinking this is 2024.

“This is January for goodness sake. Is this how we are going to start the year? How many more of such do we have in other neighbourhoods that we are not even sure of? I’m tired.”

Responding to a question on illegal miners living in the estate, Salami said, “I’m not aware. That’s what we’re hearing that investigation would commence, and the truth would actually be revealed. But it’s so sad. It’s a reflection of the Nigeria of today.

“There is no safety, there is no safety. People are being kidnapped in their homes. People cannot travel because they are being kidnapped. People sleeping in their homes are being bombed. For goodness sake, what’s going on in this place?”

On the magnitude of damage suffered by him as a result of the explosion, Salami said, “Everything is gone, everything. The whole house is gone. All the vehicles, all the properties, everything is gone. In fact, this whole area, all the houses would have to be demolished. Every single house must be demolished because their structural defects are evident; there are cracks everywhere. Everything has to be demolished and probably rebuilt. You’re talking about billions here.”

Another resident in the area, who simply identified himself as Apa, debunked the news that illegal mining was the cause of the explosion. Apa said, “When I called my neighbour, Dada, he said, “You remember those Malians? There must be equipment they’re using for doing their mining work that must have exploded, and that equipment is not a cheap material. It’s something that’s very heavy.

“If the explosion had happened in Odogbo barracks, then one would say, yes, they have all sorts of things there. But here, it’s very wrong. That thing is not supposed to be kept in this type of environment. And wherever such equipment is kept, it must be under-regulated humidity. Maybe the temperature would have triggered it, and that’s my own suspicion.

“Because I heard that Governor Makinde said there is illegal mining here, but this is not so. There is nothing like illegal mining here. It’s miners that live here that brought the equipment and they are Malians.

“This is a lesson for the Nigerian government to decide whether we still want to keep such people in our country. Malians do a lot of things apart from this, they cause a lot of havoc. so the government should start thinking about what to do about them, and if you find out they don’t have documents to live in this country.”

Some residents around the affected area lamented the late arrival of emergency responders at the scene of the explosion.

Speaking to The PUNCH correspondent on Wednesday, a resident who gave his name as Tunde Atilade, said no emergency responder was in sight for a while after the explosion.

According to him, some of the deceased victims could have survived if they had arrived earlier.

He said, “When the explosion happened, we could not even ascertain the cause but we decided to start looking for casualties. During this time we discovered people were trapped in the rubble of some of the houses that collapsed. Residents had to join hands to rescue the people. For over two hours, there was confusion everywhere and people had to resort to self-help. This went on for over two hours as the injured victims were being carried into available vehicles to the hospital. The local rescuers were helpless while people were trapped under the rubble.

It was gathered that some schools affected by the impact of the explosion were closed on Wednesday. A bank that was also in the vicinity and affected by the blast was shut.

A survivor of the explosion who simply identified himself as Adeleke, said he lost his elder brother to the incident.

The survivor, who spoke with a local broadcasting station, Lagelu FM, asserted that they were at the hotel in the area playing tennis before his brother sought to go out to attend to something before the explosion caused a stir that sent a sharp object that gave him a deep cut in his stomach.

Adeleke said, “He came out to the front of the transformer where the incident happened. His intestines were out after the cut.”

He identified his late brother as Oladipupo, noting that he was rushed to the Adeoyo General Hospital immediately after the incident.

Meanwhile, more victims were pulled out alive from the rubble on Wednesday. This includes a yet-to-be-identified male adult who was moved into an ambulance.

A Special Adviser to the governor on security matters, Fatai Owoseni, while speaking on a radio programme on Tuesday said, there was a possibility of having more people trapped under the rubble.

He said We can’t ascertain what caused the explosion now. But people in this area just heard the noise of the explosion. And the noise reached as far as Jericho, Ologuneru. That is to say, it must have been a big explosion. We have seen a crater at the scene of the explosion. So many houses within a radius of 500 meters away from where we suspected the thing started are affected. Some houses were completely brought down. There is a possibility that we may still have some people in the rubble of the houses. I learnt some people have been taken to the hospital. For now, the focus and the attention is to see how we can hasten rescue operations. Other arms of the security are there to prevent people from surging into area.”