“The little girl was sleeping in the sitting room and suddenly the gas explosion occurred with a big sound [boom]. The intense heat from the explosion must have killed the girl because she sustained burns on her face and leg. The building was almost on fire while the window net and frame got burnt which were closed to where Tofoluwa slept,” a neighbor said.
A three-year old girl who received serious injuries in Saturday’s gas explosion in Arakale market in Akure, the Ondo State capital, has died.
A neighbor confirmed to SaharaReporters that Tofoluwa, who was a kindergarten pupil in the neighborhood, died on Monday.
SaharaReporters reported on Sunday that Tofoluwa’s condition was critical.
The Ondo State government said that eight persons were injured in the inferno, and promised to punish the perpetrators.
Sources confirmed that Tofoluwa was visiting her grandparent’s house near St. Thomas Anglican Church in Ararkale when the blast occurred. The house is located just behind the scene of the explosion.
Meanwhile, SaharaReporters has confirmed that Tofoluwa’s mother and grandparent/s suffered serious chest and face burns in the incident, and are in critical condition at the trauma center in Ondo.
A neighbor, who identified himself as Bayo, said the loud sound and heat of the explosion caused the death of the little girl.
“The little girl was sleeping at the sitting room and suddenly the gas explosion occurred with a big sound [boom]. The intense heat from the explosion must have killed the girl because she sustained burns on her face and leg. The building was almost on fire while the window net and frame got burnt which were closed to where Tofoluwa slept,” he said.
Residents and neighbors were seen Monday night discussing the tragedy, wearing sad faces. The three-bedroom home has been placed under lock and key.
Mrs. Bunmi Adeniran, a petty trader adjacent to the burnt house told SaharaReporters that Tofoluwa’s mother always brought her to the grandparent’s house every morning, from where she attended a nearby kindergarten.
“I don’t know her father but her mother would always bring her here every day because she goes to school at the second street,” she said, describing the little girl as a very friendly child who loved to play.
“This gas explosion is a disaster to all of us. Even her mother and grandparents are in critical condition at the trauma hospital as I speak with you,” she said.
Despite its pledge to punish those who are responsible for the explosion, it is unclear what action the state government will take against some of its task officials who are alleged to have been collecting bribes from the owner of the gas tank to place his business in the locality.
Goods and property worth billions of Naira were destroyed in the explosion. Most of those affected are traders from the southeast who sell such items as electronics, mattresses and paint.