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Scores Die In Fuel Tanker Explosion in Sierra Leone

At least 100 people were killed and at least 100 wounded in Freetown when a fuel tanker exploded following a collision.

A statement from Sierra Leone's National Disaster Management Agency (NDMA) said that late on Friday November 5, 2021, a loaded fuel tanker and a truck carrying granite collided on a highway in Wellington in the eastern part of Freetown. The statement said that people rushed to the scene to collect spilled fuel and that there was then a "major explosion".

Sierra Leone president Julius Maada Bio cancelled a trip to Ghana and visited the scene on Sunday (November 7). He said in a statement that the NDMA had recorded 100 deaths and that about 100 people had been admitted to hospital. "This is a moment to come together and avoid the blame game. We must come together as a community and deal with this disaster. We must say never again will we make such a mistake," he said.

State House, Sierre Leone

Sierre Leone president addresses residents at the scene of a deadly oil tanker explosion in Freetown on November 7, 2021.

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