Africa
Nigeria: Lagos pipeline blast 'kills 100'
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May 15, 2008 - 7:58:47 PM

At least 100 people have been killed in an oil pipeline explosion in Nigeria's commercial capital Lagos, the local Red Cross says.

The blast tore through Ijegun suburb, engulfing schools and homes after a bulldozer burst the pipeline, but was brought under control as night wore on.

Red Cross officials said many injured people had been taken to hospital and rescue attempts were continuing.

Children in schools in the blast area are feared dead.

As firefighters fought the blaze with sand and water, for much of the evening families searched for those still missing.

At least 36 people have been taken to a nearby military hospital, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) spokesman Abdulsalam Mohammed said.

Nigeria is one of the world's major oil producers and pipelines cut through many residential areas, both in cities such as Lagos and oil-producing areas.

Several of these have exploded, often when local people cut holes in them to steal oil.

But the BBC's Alex Last in Lagos says it seems this incident was just a terrible accident.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) says there were at least 400 acts of vandalism on its pipelines each year, reports the AP news agency.

At least 40 people were killed in a pipeline explosion in December in Lagos last year.

In 2006, some 400 people were killed in two blasts in Lagos.

Source: BBC