Zaria, Kaduna State — A quiet Monday morning turned into a scene of horror after a deadly tanker explosion ripped through Dan Magaji, Zaria, at about 8:30 a.m.
The tragedy struck along the Kaduna–Kano expressway bypass, near the Rochas Foundation School, between Kwangila and Dan Magaji. Eyewitnesses say two fuel-laden tankers collided with two passenger-packed Golf cars, triggering not one, but five deafening explosions. Flames roared skyward, belching black smoke that choked the air and blanketed the highway.
“All the occupants of the cars died instantly—except one driver who somehow survived, but with severe burns,” a shaken witness told security analyst Zagazola Makama, who broke the news on X.
The devastation was instant. The fire consumed metal and flesh alike, leaving the road littered with twisted wreckage. Panic spread as people scrambled to safety while sirens wailed in the distance.
Emergency responders and security forces quickly sealed off the area. Motorists have been advised to avoid the route as recovery crews battle to clear the mangled remains and douse the last embers of the inferno.
It’s yet another grim reminder of the deadly cocktail of poor road safety, speeding, and dangerous fuel transportation that stalks Nigeria’s highways.
