Reported by: Oahimire Omone Precious | Edited by: Gabriel Osa
A gas explosion tore through a private filling station in Calabar on Saturday morning, injuring multiple residents, destroying parts of the facility, and damaging nearby shops and buildings in what witnesses described as one of the most alarming fire incidents in the city in recent months. The blast happened at a private petrol and gas outlet identified in reports as Fonex or Fomex filling station on Edibe Edibe Street or Road in Calabar South Local Government Area of Cross River State.
Reports from the scene indicate the explosion occurred at about 9:40 a.m. and was strong enough to shake surrounding buildings, with some residents initially fearing it was a bomb blast. Vanguard reported that there were no fatalities as of the time its report was filed, while Punch said several residents were severely injured and that some victims were treated nearby before others were taken to hospitals.
The fire reportedly engulfed major sections of the station, including its fuel and gas storage areas, and also affected vehicles parked within the premises. Because the facility is located in a densely populated part of Calabar South, the impact extended beyond the station itself, with nearby commercial premises and adjacent structures also affected as residents and business owners fled the area.
Accounts from the ground suggest the immediate aftermath was chaotic. Punch reported that, at least initially, neither the police nor the fire service had reached the scene, creating what it described as a security vacuum. During that period, some residents attempted to contain the flames using sand, water, and other improvised means, while reports also said hoodlums and looters took advantage of the disorder to cart away goods from affected shops and from the damaged station.
The issue of emergency response has become one of the most contentious aspects of the incident. Vanguard reported that residents complained both federal and state fire services had still not arrived even an hour after the explosion, though the University of Calabar Fire Service had been contacted and was expected to intervene. Punch’s later report said the Cross River Police Command had begun deployment to the scene and was working to mobilise fire service personnel, including support from the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria.
That apparent delay is significant because Cross River has already faced criticism over emergency response times in earlier fire incidents. In January, Premium Times reported that a Federal Fire Service truck and its personnel were attacked by an angry mob in Calabar during a separate operation, with the service saying residents blamed delayed response. That earlier incident suggests emergency response issues in the city were already politically and socially sensitive before Saturday’s explosion.
The cause of the Calabar blast had not been officially established in the reports available on Saturday, but eyewitness accounts pointed in different directions. Some residents told Punch they suspected a customer may have made a phone call near the gas dispensing area shortly before the explosion. A mechanic identified as Ekpenyong Sam, who works opposite the station, suggested the fire may instead have been caused by an electrical fault or expired equipment within the facility. At this stage, those remain witness claims rather than confirmed official findings.
Police were, however, visibly drawn into the response. Punch quoted Cross River Police spokesperson ASP Eitokpah Sunday as confirming that officers had been deployed, while Vanguard reported that Commissioner of Police Rashid Afegbua personally visited the scene for an on-the-spot assessment. That indicates the incident was serious enough to trigger senior-level security attention even before a formal technical determination of the cause.
The human impact also appears broader than the initial casualty numbers suggest. Punch reported emotional scenes at the site, including parents crying and searching for their children amid the confusion. Some victims were said to have received first aid at nearby patent medicine stores before transfer to hospitals, indicating that the blast radius reached ordinary residents quickly and that bystanders became part of the first response before formal emergency services were fully in place.
The Calabar explosion also sits within a pattern of repeated fire and explosion risks in Cross River State. In January, state fire authorities said properties worth more than ₦3 billion were destroyed in fire incidents across Cross River in 2025. That official tally included different categories of fire, among them gas explosions, electrical fires, bush fires, and petroleum-related incidents. The new Calabar blast therefore comes in a state already dealing with a substantial fire safety burden.
Calabar itself has a troubling history with major explosion incidents. In 2016, a gas explosion at the Central Bank of Nigeria building in Calabar left multiple casualties, and in 2017 police confirmed nine deaths in a tank farm fire outbreak in the city. Those earlier disasters underscore why residents reacted with immediate fear on Saturday and why any lapse in prevention or emergency response is likely to attract intense public scrutiny.
What is clearly established for now is that a private petrol and gas station in Calabar South exploded on Saturday morning, several people were injured, property worth millions of naira was destroyed, and emergency response became a major public issue in the aftermath. What remains unresolved is the exact trigger of the blast, the full number of people injured, the final estimate of losses, and whether any safety or regulatory breach contributed to the incident.
The next important development will likely be whether fire, police, or petroleum safety authorities issue a formal technical finding. That will determine whether the explosion was caused by operational negligence, faulty equipment, unsafe customer behaviour, or a broader compliance failure at the facility. Until then, the incident stands as another serious warning about the risks of gas and fuel infrastructure operating inside densely populated urban neighborhoods in Nigeria.
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