By Seun Sanni
LAGOS, Jan 20 (Reuters) - A fire on a pipeline owned by
Nigeria's state oil company in the commercial capital Lagos
killed three people on Sunday, a Reuters witness said.
The blaze broke out in the Abule-Egba district of the
southwestern megacity. Residents said it started shortly before
8 p.m. (1900 GMT).
A Reuters television camera operator counted three dead
bodies at the scene. The fire burned nearby houses and vehicles.
Another witness, resident Ayo Adewale, said there were "many
dead people". Reuters was unable to verify the claim.
Many fires on pipelines in Nigeria, Africa's biggest crude
oil producer, are caused by theft and sabotage. The methods used
to steal oil often result in accidents that cause fires.
"People were running and I was asking where was this
happening, then I got near here and they said pipeline vandals
did this," said Adewale, who was in the area when the fire took
hold.
Oluwafemi Damilola, director general of Lagos State
Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA), said he and his team were
told "some undesirable elements vandalised the pipeline".
It was not immediately clear what, if any, impact the
pipeline fire would have on the operations of the Nigerian
National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).
NNPC spokesman Samson Makoji late on Sunday the state oil
company was assessing the situation.