Ten months after a petrol tanker explosion that killed 42 people and injured 52 others in Essa community, Katcha Local Council of Niger State, families of the victims including survivors are still waiting for the financial support promised by Governor Umar Bago.

Mr Bago pledged ₦1 million to each family that lost a loved one in the incident and ₦500,000 to each of the injured.

However, survivors and grieving families who spoke to the Peoples Gazette said that Mr Bago had not fulfilled his promise, especially as survivors struggle to rebuild their lives after the October 21, 2025, incident.

One of the survivors, Ndaluki Mohammed, was at his business hub in the heart of the town, selling petrol on the black market to feed his family, before the explosion left him shattered. 

He was expecting patronage from motorcyclists, unaware that his son was among the victims. 

“My child (Muhammadu) was in school when the accident happened but scaled through the window and went straight to the scene and was caught in the fire,” he told The Gazette.

Mr Mohammed was stunned when he learned his 10-year-old son was among the explosion’s victims.

“I was on the main road selling my black market petrol when the news got to me. I never bothered to go there but people rushed to us, calling for help,” he recalled the sad day.

Sadly, his son, a Primary Four pupil, was consumed by the raging fire and did not survive the devastating explosion. He was first taken to the Badeggi Hospital, then transferred to the Federal Medical Centre in Bida, and later to Gwagwalada Hospital, where he eventually died.

“He was taken to a hospital after the fire pierced his body. My child was the first victim to be taken to hospital,” Mr Mohammed narrated, adding that he spent at least N50,000 before Mr Bago intervened to settle medical bills of the victims.

“I have not heard anything about the money, except for the funds promised to the youth and women in the community. We just pray that he fulfills his promise but the devastating accident ruined our days,” the bereaved father told The Gazette.

Another resident, Usman Abdullahi, said his wife, children, and grandchildren, were consumed in the tanker fire.

He stated that the governor fulfilled the N20 million promise to the youth and women in the village but has yet to fulfill his pledge to the victims’ families and survivors.

“He has yet to fulfill his promise to the dead victims’ families and the survivors,” he said, adding that the governor promised N1 million to each of the families and N500,000 each to the injured victims during his visit to the Essa village. 

“I lost all of them and only one person is still alive,” Mr Abdullahi said, noting that he counted 27 corpses when the fire engulfed the residents.

Gripped by emotion as his wife and others battled the raging fire after the tanker exploded, he said his eyes filled with tears as he watched people burn.

He said though Mr Bago’s promise would not bring back the deceased, honouring his promise should provide succour to the victims, especially those struggling to rebuild their lives.

“Everything went through NSEMA (Niger State Emergency Management Authority), so we heard from them when we went to their office in Minna. Fifty-two persons were killed in total but when the governor came, the death toll was 42. Some injured victims died later,” Mr Abdullahi said.

Another grieving father, 54-year-old Ndaluki Mohammed, told The Gazette that his wife and daughter were instantly consumed by the raging fire.

“My son was injured and taken to Gwagwalada hospital for treatment. He spent seven months in the hospital even though the governor went to the hospital to visit him,” he said. 

According to him, his wife walked him a distance and bade him farewell as he left to deliver cassava flakes (garri), unaware it was their final moment together.

“The explosion happened 30 minutes after my wife left,” he said. 

Many of the injured victims told The Gazette that the governor settled their medical bills throughout their hospital stays.

Survivors struggle to forge ahead

When The Gazette spoke to some survivors of the tanker explosion in Essa village, they said they were struggling to rebuild their lives after the disaster.

Among them is 25-year-old Abubakar Usman, whose life the inferno almost destroyed after the tanker exploded on the dilapidated highway near his village.

“When it fell down, it was not far from where we sat,” he recounted sadly to The Gazette. “I survived because of government intervention and was taken to Ilorin hospital. The government settled everything, including medical care bills.”

He said less than 10 minutes after he left his spot and headed towards where the incident occurred, his world fell apart. Mr Usman was later seen with visible bruises sustained from the fire.

“The fire caught me from my waist down to my two legs and hands. I can’t count the number of survivors for now. The governor’s promise to us has yet to be fulfilled,” he said, grumbling over the unfulfilled promise Mr Bago made during his visit to the village.

That is not all for him; Mr Usman had long anticipated the N500,000 promised to survivors of the explosion, but sadly, that promise had not materialised.  

“One will still be anticipating the promise. We are just waiting,” he stated.

On the day of the incident, another survivor, Mohammed Baba, sat in his shop with his friends before he left hurriedly to watch residents scooping fuel from the fallen tanker. He added that his story changed when he drew closer to the scene and was caught in the flames.

He recounted, “We were at shops not far from the incident. We heard that a tanker fell and we all went there. We saw many people scooping fuel from the fallen tanker which spilled its contents on the road. We were on one side and after a few minutes, the tanker went up in flames, forcing us to run as the fire chased me and others.”

Mr Baba’s life trajectory has not remained the same since the October incident when he ran for safety as fire roared while residents, including children, were scooping fuel from the fallen tanker.

“I ran to the bush and eventually collapsed there until I was helped out from the bush that I was picked up and taken to hospital. After the inferno, people searched for me and found me,” he stated.

The survivor spent months at the Federal Medical Hospital in Bida, where he recovered after Mr Bago settled his medical bills alongside others. His hands and other body parts burned by the fire still show visible scars.

The Niger State Governor, Umar Bago, was not available for comment. Text and WhatsApp messages sent to his mobile were not answered as of the time this report was filed.

Also, the spokesperson for NSEMA, Ibrahim Hussaini,  could not be reached for comment as calls made to his number went unanswered as of press time.