Explosion rocks Lagos Atlas Cove

THE Pipeline Products and Marketing Company (PPMC), a subsidiary of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) on Wednesday confirmed another fire caused by pipeline vandals at Ilado,  a community around the Atlas Cove.
Mr Nasir Imodagbe, Manager, Media Relations and External Affairs of PPMC told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos that the vandals broke the pipelines to siphon petroleum products.
Imodagbe said the fire incident at the high sea in Lagos was caused by a group of vandals who came with their canoe to siphon the product.
He said that the fire which moved through the pipeline toward the Atlas Cove Jetty, was put off by officials who were on ground.
“We have shut the product network from Atlas Cove to allow repairs of the damaged line immediately,” he said.
Imodagbe, however, assured Nigerians and Lagosians not to panic as adequate measures had been put in place to combat the menace.
“We are going to reopen the shut line immediately the repairs are effected. The Ilado community area is known for notorious pipeline vandalism,” Imodagbe said.
Some community leaders at Ilado village, who preferred to be anonymous, alleged that security agencies had compromised with vandals on the offshore area of the pipelines.
The South-West image maker of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA), Ibrahim Farinloye, also confirmed to Nigerian Tribune that the explosion was as a result of pipeline vandalisation.
He stated that men of the agency recovered about 200 jerry cans of 50 litres and three burning boats belonging to the vandals.
Farinloye said that the fire was finally put out around 10:48 in yesterday morning and adding that cooling and pegging processes would commence soon.
He emphasized that “it is not a barge, but vandalisation of NNPC pipelines, against earlier information that a barge exploded.”
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