Governor Blames Illegal Miners for Ibadan Explosion

By Adedapo Adesanya

Illegal miners have been identified as the cause of the explosion that rocked the Bodija Area of Ibadan, the Oyo state capital on Tuesday.

According to the Governor of the state, Mr Seyi Makinde, who visited the scene of the explosion late last night, preliminary investigations by security agencies revealed that the explosion was caused by explosive devices stored by illegal miners.

Also, Business Post spoke to some sources in the Southwestern state of the federation, who corroborated the Governor’s claims.

The explosion occurred at about 7.44 pm yesterday, January 16, 2024, in Bodija, Ibadan.

The tragic incident has resulted in deaths and injuries to residents in the vicinity and also affected properties.

Although the Governor put the casualty figures at two, saying 77 other people were injured in the incident, sources said the numbers are more than what Mr Makinde quoted.

This newspaper cannot, however, confirm the numbers yet.

As of the time of this report, further investigations were still ongoing.

Mr Makinde has also called for calm and directive that all necessary measures to help the victims be provided.

The governor also directed that the medical bills of all victims of the explosion be covered by the government with temporary accommodation provided for those whose houses were affected by the explosion.

Many houses and business buildings were damaged in the explosion, several kilometres from where the explosion occurred.