Gas tanker truck fire kills more than 100 people

A gas tanker truck ignited an inferno at a crowded industrial gas plant in Nigeria on Thursday, killing more than 100 people who were lining up to refill their cooking gas cylinders in time for Christmas.

The disaster took place in Nnewi, a predominantly Christian city in southeast Nigeria. By the time firefighters managed to put out the blaze, there were charred remains of more than 100 bodies.

A witness, Emeka Peters, said the fire broke out at about 11 am when a tanker truck that had finished discharging fresh gas at the Chikason Group Gas plant left without waiting the prescribed cooling time.