The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has raised concerns as 412 fatalities occurred in 244 incidents involving tankers and filling stations among others in the last five years.

The authority stated this in a report on safety incidents from 2018 to 2023 on Wednesday in Abuja during a safety workshop for Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTDs), road transport owners and petroleum marketers in the North Central region.

There are already eight in 2023 with an average of one incident every five days.

In 2021, there were 173 deaths from 103 incidents while 48 deaths occurred in 41 incidents since 2022.

NMDPRA blamed the issues on leaking trucks, discharging and dispensing products same time, poor safety queues of fuel attendants, no firefighting equipment, oil spills and improper tools, among others.

The Executive Director, Health Safety, Environment and Community at NMDPRA, Mustapha Lamorde, warned the operators over the incessant safety incidents.

Lamorde, who was represented by the North Central Regional Coordinator, NMDPRA, Mrs Maijiddah Abdulkadir, said: "The NMDPRA has planned to recommence the Health Safety and Environment (HSE) technical audits, the outcome of which will be used in liaison with other directorates, in the issuance of various licenses."

She noted that the authority was keen on implementing the compliance actions.

"This will no longer be business as usual; it is now safety first, the NMDPRA would ensure that the aspirations of the federal government by passing the PIA is achieved.