A fuel tanker explosion at the tollgate axis inward Ibadan on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway has triggered a massive traffic gridlock, which began on Friday evening and persisted till yesterday evening.
Thousands of motorists and commuters have been stranded with security agencies, including the military, police, Amotekun Corps, Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), and Oyo State Road Transport Management Authority (OYRTMA) making frantic effort to solve the puzzle as of press time yesterday evening.
The explosion, which occurred very close to the base of the overhead bridge before Guru Maharaji place at the busy tollgate corridor, disrupted traffic flow along one of Nigeria’s most important highways.
An eyewitness, Mrs. Grace Aduke, who sells boiled corn by the roadside, very close to the scene of the incident, told Sunday Sun: “When the tanker exploded, it was as if the fire would jump to other vehicles on the road. Many motorists abandoned their vehicles and ran away for safety. It was much later they came to carry their vehicles. Two other trucks were also involved in the accident.”
This resulted in a vehicular backlog stretching several kilometres and affecting movement into Ibadan and adjoining routes.
As of 5:30pm yesterday, traffic remained largely at a standstill, with frustrated commuters spending several hours on the road, while many motorists sought alternative routes to their destinations.
Other eyewitnesses described the situation as chaotic, saying the explosion sparked panic among road users and created a major obstruction that quickly snowballed into a severe traffic crisis.
“The traffic is terrible. People have been trapped here for hours without any clear indication of when the road will be free,” a stranded motorist said.
Another commuter lamented the hardship caused by the congestion, noting that journeys that would ordinarily take minutes had stretched into several hours.
Commercial transport operators were also among those worst hit, with many passengers reportedly forced to endure long delays under difficult conditions.
The traffic spillover extended to adjoining roads within the Ibadan metropolis, worsening congestion across several parts of the city and creating additional challenges for road users.
For people travelling from Lagos to Ibadan, the traffic stretched from Circular Road flyover to the flyover before Guru Maharaji and for those moving from Ibadan to Lagos, the logjam stretched from the base of Challenge Link Bridge to almost the circular road bridge again.
Although emergency responders and relevant authorities were said to be monitoring the situation, details regarding the cause of the explosion and any possible casualties were not immediately available.
