By Abdullahi Yusuf
At least one person has been confirmed dead, and a truck razed down following a fire outbreak at an illegal used engine oil refinery at Katango area of Wailari along Ring Road Bypass,Kano.
The fire, which started around 09:50 a.m. on Monday morning also burned down five residential houses in the area.
It took about three hours for the men of the Kano State Fire Service, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) and fire workers from Salbas Petrol Station to bring the fire under control.
The dead body, identified as Aminu, was burnt beyond recognition and was later recovered from the debris of the illegal refinery by the fire workers.
An eyewitness, Ahmad Umar Gaya, a personnel of the Vehicle Inspection Office (VIO), said he was on duty along the road when he heard an explosion only to look around and see fireballs from the location.
“I immediately called the attention of the Kano Fire Service and directed them to the location.
“The place, which is located in the midst of residential houses at Katango in Wailari, is used to stock scraps of trucks and trailers and also to refine used engine oil for other purposes.
“No one can tell what exactly happened that led to the explosion. The trailer carrying drums of the used engine oil was gutted by the fire in which the driver was trapped and burned beyond recognition.
“Close to the location were residential houses with women and children, and about five houses were gutted by the inferno.
“An old lady who could not walk was rescued from one of the houses and two kids were also rescued from another house when their mother ran out and left them inside, all through humanitarian efforts by onlookers. The fire incident took about three hours before it was put out,” Gaya added.