Lagos blasts: More tears as death toll reaches 20 … Families still searching for missing loved ones

The death toll in the Abule-Ado explosion in Lagos rose to 20 on Monday, as many families continued to search for their missing relatives.

Our correspondents also learnt that 50 pupils of the Bethlehem Girls College were injured in the incident.

PUNCH Metro had reported that an explosion, which rocked the community on Sunday, left 17 people dead.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation had said the explosion was caused by a truck, which hit a stack of gas cylinders.

The impact of the explosion destroyed over 50 houses and many cars parked in the area.

Boarding pupils of the Bethlehem Girls College were trapped when the building, where a Mass was being celebrated collapsed. The Principal of the school, Rev. Sr. Henrietta Alokha, was killed while rescuing the schoolgirls.

One of our correspondents, who visited the scene on Monday, gathered that three more corpses were recovered from the rubble of the college building.

It was gathered that the deceased were two cooks in the school, one of whom was identified simply as Irene, and a security guard.

The Director General, Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, Femi Oke-Osanyintolu, while speaking at the scene, said the death toll had risen to 20.

He said, “Fifty-seven persons were rescued and eight discharged from hospital. One is still at the Intensive Care Unit of the Naval Hospital. Three bodies were recovered this morning, bringing the number of casualties to 20.”

More details also emerged on the identities of those who died in the explosion. Punch