Although last Wednesday?s explosion at a Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) station in Eyean, Benin City, Edo State, has been blamed on the activities of unauthorised technicians, it has also highlighted the issue of gas handling in the country. No fewer than three people were injured from the explosion traced to the activities of some fake installers of CNG cylinders. ?This incident underscores the dangers of unauthorised CNG installations by unqualified technicians using non-compliant cylinders, which we have always campaigned against?, said the Nigerian Independent Petroleum Company (Nipco) Plc that owns the outlet. ?We are cooperating fully with the relevant authorities to prevent a recurrence and reinforce our commitment to public safety across all operations.?

With the skyrocketing price of petrol following removal of subsidy, the federal government recently unveiled a programme for the conversion of vehicles to CNG (since gas is much cheaper) to lessen the economic hardship in the country. But there are growing concerns about the issue of safety, especially in an environment where unscrupulous business people abound. It is therefore clear that relevant authorities need to organise sensitisation programmes for all gas retail outlets on how to operate their business with minimal risk to themselves and the public. The pertinent question is, how are Nigerians expected to differentiate genuine professionals from quacks in the sector? Like other policies of this administration that were announced

Without much thought about implications, there is nothing on ground to suggest this has also been thought through.

Even before the CNG programme, there were already concerns about the incessant domestic gas explosions amid intense campaigns on the need for Nigerians to adopt gas as a cleaner means of cooking. But the growing number of domestic gas explosions indicate the need

For an enlightenment campaign to ensure those who handle gas always abide by safety procedures. In an incident that is typical of the carelessness often associated with many homes, a female domestic help in Epe, Lagos, turned on the gas and left to chat outside. By the time she returned to light up the gas, the kitchen was suffused with chemicals. The resultant fire and explosion consumed her and many neighbours. There are also cases

Of illegal gas refilling plants domiciled in highly inflammable areas. So, both ignorance and greed have always played a big role in many of the tragic occurrences concerning domestic gas accidents.

While the list of these accidents is long, they have become mere statistics in Nigeria such that many would have viewed the CNG incident in Edo State as ?insignificant?, especially since no life was lost. Yet, that gas has progressively become the source of death and bodily injuries for users and innocent bystanders is what should worry critical stakeholders. It is for instance important to educate households on the need to gradually replace their metal gas cylinders with fibre cylinders, said to be highly fire-resistant. The promise to phase out and replace the gas cylinders in circulation with more advanced ones should also be hastened. Some households have been using the same cylinder for upwards of three decades. That practice could be very dangerous.

However, more concerning is the issue of safety standards and regulatory oversight in the CNG conversion programme. Earlier in the year, when the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, visited the scene of a CNG truck explosion at Ita-Oshin, Abeokuta, Ogun State, he recounted a similar explosion involving another CNG-powered vehicle in Port Harcourt, Rivers State. The Ogun State incident claimed one life, while no fewer than six vehicles and two shops were burnt. We consider these to be wake-up calls for authorities in the sector. CNG conversion should not be another harbinger of death in Nigeria.

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