Fire destroys Warri-Itakpe train

One of the newly procured Warri-Itakpe standard gauge train coaches was on Tuesday evening gutted by fire.

A video trending online showed Nigerian Railway Corporation Workers (NRC) battling the inferno with leaves, blankets and other objects due to the non-availability of fire extinguishers on board the train coaches.

A staff of the Nigerian Railway Corporation, who wants to remain anonymous on Wednesday , said the cause of the fire is still unknown.

“The cause of the fire is still unknown as we speak but it has finally been put out. It is one of the new trains that runs scheduled trips between Warri and Itakpe,” the staff said.

When asked why NRC workers were seen in a video battling the fire with leaves and blankets instead of a fire extinguisher, the staff said most of the train coaches don’t have fire extinguishers fitted in them.

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“Most of the train coaches don’t have fire extinguishers. So the workers used what was available to them as of the time of the incident and they were able to quench the inferno even though a substantial part of the coach was burnt,” the staff added.

When contacted, the Spokesman of the NRC, Mr. Mahmood Yakub explained that investigation is on-going to unravel the cause of the fire.

“Our MD will be addressing the media on the cause of the fire before the close of Wednesday, but investigation is ongoing to know what caused the fire on one of the Warri-Itakpe coaches,” the NRC Spokesman said.

NT