Again, gas explosion hits Obasanjo Library, kills one

ABEOKUTA – Less than 48 hours after a gas explosion killed two persons at the Conference Hotel, Abeokuta, another explosion, Thursday, rocked the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library (OOPL), killing one technician and injuring one other person.

OOPL is almost opposite the Conference Hotel owned by former Governor Gbenga Daniel of the state, where an explosion killed a technician and a guest with three persons injured on Tuesday. Last Wednesday, a gas explosion occurred at the Oke-Igbore area of Abeokuta, killing three persons and injuring others, while less than 24 hours later, another explosion occurred, killing one person at Mercy Road, Panseke in the state capital.

Both explosions happened while refrigerator repairers were refilling gas, while the Conference Hall incident happened when a technician was fixing a faulty revolving door.

Like other explosions in the last one week in Abeokuta, technicians were topping up gas into the Air Conditions at an event center within the facility when the explosion was said to have been triggered.

Although, a worker at the OOPL told our correspondent that two persons were dead, but a statement by the management of the library indicated that only one person died while another was injured and taken to the hospital.

“Two people have already been confirmed dead,” a worker at OOPL said. Two entrances leading to the complex were temporarily shut down, with the management, in a statement signed by Vitalis Ortese, the Managing Director, OOPL Ventures, saying the closure was to prevent further escalation of the incident.

The statement read, “The management of the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library wishes to confirm that there was indeed a gas explosion today, at the main event Marquee of the complex in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital.

“The explosion emanated when a pair of technical vendors were conducting routine servicing of the air conditioning units.

“The explosion, which occurred at about 11:04a.m, unfortunately, led to the death of a technical vendor and serious injury of the second vendor.

“The emergency team of the Library immediately took action to prevent further damages and subsequently moved the injured to the hospital. Visitors into the complex were temporarily limited to contain any fallouts from the explosion.”

Meanwhile, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ogun State, Adekunle Akinlade, has urged Governor Dapo Abiodun to immediately act and prevent further occurrence of deaths occasioned by gas explosions in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.

Akinlade, who contested the 2019 election against Abiodun, called on the state government to immediately set up high powered team to investigate the source of adulterated gas in circulation in the state.

The former House of Representatives member in a statement signed by his media aide, Azeez Adelani, urged the state government to isolate the source of the cylinder or gas causing the havoc.