One person has reportedly died in a kerosene explosion in the Egor Local Government Area of Edo State.
It was gathered that the incident, which occurred at the Evbuotubu market on Tuesday, left two others injured.
The victim, identified as Mama Chichi, said to be a kerosene trader, had lit a match over a gallon containing the product in an attempt to confirm its genuineness, when it suddenly exploded.
It was also learnt that the explosion left a section of the market in flames, destroying several shops in the process.
The victim was said to have succumbed to the injuries she sustained, while the others were taken to a hospital.
According to a source, the substance was suspected to be adulterated kerosene because the fire spread rapidly through another shop containing palm oil, before the arrival of men of the state fire service.
The Director of the Edo State Fire Service, Mr. Franklyn Agbonlahor, confirmed the incident but said that the service did not record any death.
Agbonlahor, however, blamed the delay in reaching the scene of the fire on bad roads.
He said, “Our men responded promptly. We invited other fire agencies and they were there.
“The terrain was bad. We had to pass through some difficult lanes to get to the market.”
When contacted, the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Johnson Kokumo, promised to get back to our correspondent on the matter but had yet to do so as of the time of filing the report.
