Two persons have been confirmed dead following a gas tanker explosion that occurred on the Lekki-Epe Expressway in Lagos in the early hours of Saturday, leaving several properties destroyed.

According to the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, the incident occurred at about 2:36 a.m. and involved a collision between a 30-tonne gas truck and a 20-tonne tipper truck.

In a statement, the agency’s Controller General, Margaret Adeseye, said preliminary findings indicate that the tipper truck, reportedly speeding from the Epe axis, rammed into the rear of the stationary gas tanker, which had failed to pull off the highway.

The impact triggered a massive explosion and fire, which spread rapidly to adjoining structures, affecting three warehouses and about 10 roadside shops, including a gym and a generator house.

Firefighters from Lekki Phase II, Oniru, and Epe II fire stations were immediately deployed to the scene and were able to contain the blaze, preventing further escalation.

The fire service noted that a nearby Total Petrol Filling Station, which had a 33,000-litre Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) tanker, was successfully protected from the inferno, averting a potentially greater disaster.

Emergency responders recovered the bodies of the tipper driver and his assistant, both burnt beyond recognition, while the driver of the gas tanker escaped unhurt.

The agency also reported that three Sienna buses, a Toyota Corolla, and a forklift were recovered from the affected area.

Authorities confirmed that the situation has since been brought under control, while efforts are ongoing to evacuate the wreckage of the vehicles and fully restore normalcy to the expressway.