A fuel tanker exploded near Sierra Leone’s capital, killing at least 92 people and severely injuring dozens of others.
AP with additional reporting Vatican News
The explosion took place late Friday after a vehicle struck the tanker in Wellington, a suburb just to the east of Freetown. The mortuary at Connaught Hospital reported 92 bodies had been brought in by Saturday morning. About 30 severely burned victims were not expected to survive, according to staffer Foday Musa.
Local reports say some of those burnt to death were people trapped in their cars due to a traffic jam. Others were bystanders and some motorbike taxi riders caught up in the inferno.
A horrendous loss of life
Video obtained by The Associated Press showed a giant fireball burning in the night sky following the explosion, as some survivors with severe burns cried out in pain. Charred remains of the victims lay strewn at the scene awaiting transport to mortuaries.
President Julius Maada Bio, who was in Scotland attending the United Nations climate talks Saturday, deplored the “horrendous loss of life.” “My profound sympathies with families who have lost loved ones and those who have been maimed as a result,” he tweeted.
Vice President Mohamed Juldeh Jalloh visited two hospitals overnight and said Sierra Leone’s National Disaster Management Agency and others would “work tirelessly” in the wake of the emergency. “We are all deeply saddened by this national tragedy, and it is indeed a difficult time for our country,”
