Governor Sanwo-Olu seeks law to curb tanker fires

The Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu has emphasised the requisite for Nigeria to have a uniform “Combustible Standard Law” guiding tankers and heavy goods vehicles.

He stated this at the commissioning of the Aerial Hydraulic Firefighting Truck at Teslim Balogun Stadium, Surulere, Lagos.

Sanwo-Olu, represented by his Deputy, Dr Obafemi Hamzat, disclosed that the law was essential to safeguard lives and property of the residents, and also losing lives to fire and accidents that involve such vehicles.

He further said that 45 per cent of petroleum products come to Lagos with the effect of tankers catching fire, obliterating lives and property.

The Governor declared that the state is required to work with the Federal Fire Service to guarantee that the trucks meet up with the combustible standards before they are loaded.

In accordance with him “life is the most important gift, without which nothing else matters, therefore fire that consumes lives and property is important to everyone of us”.

Sanwo-Olu said that his government takes fire service severely, adding that the state first purchased the aerial hydraulic platform Fire Truck since 2012 and presently has four of them.

He disclosed that the state has about 700 firefighters in gainful employment and 500 were to be employed very soon, adding that there are 18 fire stations across the state.

Sanwo-Olu said, “I appreciate the State Fire Service for their consistent support. Whenever there is a need for their service and they are called upon, they work with us well.”

Prior in his comments, the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, declared that the Federal Government is dedicated to protecting lives and property.

Aregbsola guaranteed that the government would not back down in its endeavours to making policies, resources and strategies for a more secure Nigeria.

He said, “Federal Government will keep improving on our infrastructure and bring innovations, in the bid to protect lives and property that will help in putting fire under control.”

“This has been a challenge in Lagos, especially with a plethora of skyscrapers and a nightmare to fire-fighters and this will be a thing of the past now.

“The Federal Fire Service has since expanded beyond Lagos and Abuja, and now has a presence in almost all the states of the Federation.”