Schools and other institutions have been forced to close as a result of a powerful explosion that occurred at the main fuel station in Conakry, Guinea, leaving multiple people dead and over eighty-four injured.
This unfortunate catastrophe occurred this morning at the main oil depot of the Guinean state-owned oil company in Kaloum, in the Conakry administrative and economic district. It blew out the windows of numerous surrounding residences and forced hundreds of people to evacuate.
“We live near the Niger market, but we were woken up by a deafening noise that woke us up since we were already asleep. The windows of our house and those of our neighbours were smashed too, but we managed to get away from the place,” a survivor of the ordeal said.
According to the spokesperson of the Guinean government, Ousmane Gaoual Diallo, what caused the fire is still unknown, but preliminary investigations are ongoing.
It is still unknown how much damage has been done to the Kaloum terminal because, despite not being an oil-producing nation, Guinea imports refined goods, most of which are stored there and then transported throughout the nation by trucks.
Dr. Mamadouba Sylla, a surgeon at Donka Hospital, said that the dozens of injured people were taken to Conakry’s main hospitals, Ignace Deen National Hospital and Donka Hospital.
According to a press release issued by the government of Guinea, all public and private sector employees in Guinea’s capital, Conakry, as well as those in the surrounding areas, were instructed to remain at home while the cause of the fire and explosion was being investigated.
“For their own safety as well as to enable police investigations to proceed without hindrance, residents of the areas where the fire explosion occurred should refrain from visiting the scene,” Diallo stated.
The magnitude and ramifications of this catastrophe, which could directly affect the populace and economy, have further prompted the government to express its overwhelming concern.
