Governor Akinwunmi Ambode was at the scene of the tanker explosion which claimed at least nine lives and destroyed 54 vehicles on Thursday.
The Governor, who was accompanied by high ranking government officials, said in an Instagram post: “Very sad day. The loss of lives in an accident like today is very painful. My prayers are with everyone affected by this tragedy.”
The Lagos State Government earlier on Thursday commiserated with families of those who lost their lives and property in a fatal petrol tanker explosion on Otedola Bridge, inward Berger.
Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Kehinde Bamigbetan, described the accident as a sad development, saying that it was most unfortunate and regrettable.
The accident, which occurred at 5:30pm on Thursday, left about 54 vehicles burnt, with nine people feared dead and an unspecified number sustaining various degrees of injury.
“On behalf of the Lagos State Government, we extend our deepest commiseration to the families of persons who lost their lives as well as property to the incident. Our thoughts and prayers are with them in this time of pain and grief.
“As a government, we would not relent in putting measures in place to ensure safety of lives and property of all residents,” Mr Bamigbetan said.
The commissioner said Governor Akinwunmi Ambode had directed all relevant agencies to move into the area to normalise the apprehension that had taken over the area and to also ensure that those in need were adequately taken care of.
According to Bamigbetan, the governor assured that clearing of the highway of damaged vehicles to establish normal traffic flow would continue throughout the night until the objective is achieved.
Bamigbetan, however, called for the co-operation of all citizens with the officials of the agencies to restore the situation to normalcy.
He also urged motorists to continue to adhere to the safety standard and the state traffic laws so as to prevent a reoccurrence of such incidents.
