There was panic on Friday at the Fatgbems Filling Station in the Berger bus stop, Lagos after two artisans, cleaning an underground fuel tank in the station died of suffocation.
The corpses of the victims identified as Adekunle Ipaye and one United were removed around 8am by the state emergency officials and the police while their remains were deposited at Lagos Mainland Mortuary.
United, an apprentice, was inside the tank around 6am to remove the sediment therein when he got trapped. While his boss, Ipaye, attempted to rescue him, he was also entrapped.
It was gathered that the deceased did not use necessary safety gadgets before embarking on the task and could not contain the gas emitted from the tank.
Our correpondent also learnt that other contractors at the station were arrested by the police from the Ojodu division.
An eyewitness, who identified himself as Salako Famuyiwa, said the boss was warned against the rescue mission adding that the tank was too deep.
He said, “The station is under construction and the underground tanks also need to be cleaned. It was United that entered the tank first. After some minutes, it was noticed that his presence was not felt. Out of care, his boss rushed inside to rescue him but he was also suffocated. We told him not to go inside.”
The Lagos State Emergency Management Agency and the state fire service, which removed the remains, said non-compliance of the deceased to the safety measures contributed to the incident.
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