The death toll in Tuesday’s explosion in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, has risen to five with the recovery of two more bodies yesterday.
The House of Representatives said it would probe the incident that left 77 injured and 58 houses damaged, some of them completely.
Incident Manager, Emergency Situation Room, Prof. Temitope Alonge and the Oyo State Commissioner for Health, Dr. Oluwaserimi Ajetumobi, briefed reporters on rescue efforts.
Ajetumobi said many of the survivors on treatment are stable, with some already discharged.
She said: “We reported three deaths on Wednesday but as of this morning (Thursday), we picked another body from the rubble.
“We also picked another body part which cannot be recognised. It was like mopped-up muscles.
“So, five in total now but we still don’t know whether we are going to pick more from the rubbles. Five have been recovered.”
Alonge said the state government had engaged the services of clinical psychologists to provide psycho-social support for the injured in the hospitals.
He added that officials of the Nigerian Society of Engineers had begun integrity tests on the structures within the vicinity.
He appealed to the owners to stay away until the tests were concluded.
The House of Representatives indicated it would launch a full-scale probe of the explosions.
It commiserated with the victims of the incident which it described as “regrettable.”
Deputy Speaker Benjamin Kalu made this known in a statement yesterday.
The Miners Association of Nigeria (MAN) condemned the illegal storage of explosives in residential areas.
Its president, Dele Ayanleke told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) that the illegal miners did not handle the explosives according to regulations guiding their acquisition, handling, storage and usage.
According to the president, legitimate mining companies have storage facilities at their mine sites.
He said the storage of the explosives in a residential area only confirmed that the owners planned to use them at unauthorised mining sites where they did not have mining titles.
“You must obtain a permit and the military must know the quantity of explosives you are buying.
“Then you must store the materials in the appropriate place in their magazine and there is a register for that.
“Government must know how you plan to use the quantity of explosives you are planning to buy.
“You must obtain permits from the relevant ministry. It is the permits that the miners will take to a government-licenced explosives dealer to be able to buy the specified quantity.
“The movement of explosive materials from the point of purchase must also be accompanied by an explosive officer from the bomb disposal unit of the Nigerian Police,” Ayanleke explained.
He condemned the Ibadan incident and said the association would support any form of government action against the alleged owners of the explosives stored in unauthorised places.
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