In the northern Nigerian state of Jigawa, a tragic and harrowing accident occurred on Tuesday night. A tanker truck overturned to avoid colliding with a truck, causing a massive explosion that demonically devoured more than 100 lives and injured dozens more, leaving countless families with unbearable grief.
On October 16, local police confirmed that the accident occurred near the town of Maja. At that time, the driver of the fuel tanker truck unfortunately deviated from the road in order to avoid a collision and overturned.
Fuel leaked out of the tanker truck, spilled on the road and into a nearby drain. In this resource-poor country, where fuel shortages have long been widespread, residents have seen a glimmer of hope when they see the leaked fuel, and they rush forward to collect it.
Despite the efforts of the police to disperse the crowd, however, in the face of the reality of the extreme shortage of fuel, the residents' desire prevailed over fear, and they rushed forward desperately, completely unaware of the potentially great danger.
"Rescuers continue to find bodies, the death toll rises from 94 to 104, and another 50 people have been admitted to hospital as of noon on Wednesday, bringing the total number of injured to 100," said police spokesman Lawan Shiisu Adam heavily. ”
Worryingly, however, the death toll is likely to continue to rise. The ensuing explosion was like an apocalypse, instantly triggering a conflagration, engulfing many people in the relentless flames and losing their lives in an instant. Those who were injured, groaning in pain, were rushed to a nearby hospital.
At this moment, there is an atmosphere of tension and sadness in the hospital, and the medical staff are doing their best to provide emergency medical treatment.
Nigeria, Africa's most populous country and one of the largest crude oil producers, is supposed to be energy-rich, but economic mismanagement and recent reforms have led to an unprecedented rise in oil prices.
Oil prices have soared fivefold since President Bora ·Ahmed · Tinubu lifted long-standing fuel subsidies last year. Recent fuel shortages and price hikes by national oil companies have exacerbated an already dire situation. Against this backdrop, people's desire for cheap fuel has become so strong that they rush to buy it despite the dangers of a tanker truck accident.
At the same time, Nigeria's road safety situation has been a cause for concern, with poor road conditions and tank truck explosions not uncommon. According to the Federal Road Safety Commission (FRSC), more than 1,500 tanker truck accidents were recorded in 2020 alone, resulting in more than 500 fatalities.
Last month, another fatal tanker truck accident occurred in northwestern Niger, killing 59 lives. And the World Health Organization estimates that the number of road traffic accident deaths in Nigeria is about 40,000 per year, which is much higher than the more than 5,000 road traffic accident deaths reported by the Nigerian Road Safety Commission in 2023.
In the aftermath of the tragedy, the Nigerian Medical Association sprang into action, calling on doctors to rush to nearby hospitals to assist with the emergency response, urging medical staff to do their best to treat the wounded. However, Nigeria's health infrastructure is very weak, especially in rural areas like Jigawa, which is struggling to cope with an emergency of this magnitude.
New Jersey man sues Trump Hotel over pool injury
At the same time, on the other side of the ocean, in the United States, there was also a hotel-related incident. Salvatore Musumeci Jr, a New Jersey ·man, filed a lawsuit against the Trump Organization and the Trump Hotel International Organization.
It turned out that in February 2023, Musumeci jumped into a mislabeled swimming pool while on a business trip to Trump Doral Miami National Resort. He originally thought the pool was 6'3" deep, but it was only 3'6" deep, a mistake that caused him to suffer "serious and permanent bodily injury."
Musumeci is seeking compensation for unspecified medical expenses and ongoing pain as he requires extensive medical treatment.
The lawsuit has drawn attention to the luxury hotel's potential security concerns. And before that, there was a series of other news about the Trump-branded hotel. In Chicago, a 21-year-old man was recently charged with a felony of weapons after a firearm was found in a room at the Trump Hotel International Tower.
In addition, following the October 7 Hamas attacks, the Trump Organization recently suspended commercial talks to open a Trump-branded hotel in Israel, citing concerns about conflating politics with business.