A gas explosion rocked the Agbado Road area in the Toyin vicinity of Ifako Ijaiye Local Government Area of Lagos State late Tuesday, causing extensive damage to no less than 18 shops, as confirmed by Margaret Adeseye, Director of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, in a statement released to the press on Wednesday.

Earlier reports by PUNCH Online had indicated that an undetermined number of shops, stocked with various goods, were engulfed by flames following a fire ignited by a gas tanker incident in the vicinity.

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Providing further details on the incident, Adeseye attributed the explosion to the unloading of six 75-50 kg gas cylinders from a mini truck at a gas station.

The resulting blast not only affected the immediate vicinity but also spread across the street, ravaging a total of 18 shops and their contents, in addition to the mini truck.

According to the statement, “The emergency was triggered by the unloading of six 75-50(kg) gas cylinders from a parked mini truck to a gas shop, which inadvertently led to an explosion due to a compromised head cap of one of the cylinders, accompanied by fire.”

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“The ensuing flames propagated to the opposite side of the street, impacting a total of 18 shops and their contents, as well as the mini truck,” the statement continued.